All articles tagged with #niaid
Trump-era policy barred direct NIAID contact with the World Health Organization during hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks, forcing limited, listening‑mode participation and slowing global outbreak response as several top U.S. health posts remain unfilled; the rule was later relaxed to allow some NIAID staff to attend meetings, with as many as 30 cleared.
Key US infectious-disease officials are barred from direct communication with the World Health Organization during outbreaks, forcing listening-only participation and routing follow-ups through the Department of Health and Human Services, as leadership vacancies loom at major health agencies. The restrictions come amid hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks and reflect a broader US retreat from global health forums, raising concerns about the speed and coordination of outbreak responses.
Jeffery Taubenberger, who had been serving as acting director of NIH's National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), reportedly stepped down. His exit would widen NIH's leadership vacuum; the timing and reasons remain unclear, and he is still listed as acting director on the institute's site.
Dr. David Morens, a former senior adviser at NIAID, was indicted on five counts for allegedly using a personal Gmail to hide COVID-19-era records and share nonpublic NIH information with a New York nonprofit tied to EcoHealth Alliance, part of a scheme to evade FOIA requests and influence the pandemic-origin narrative; he has appeared in court and is due to be arraigned.
A former NIAID senior adviser, David M. Morens, was indicted on conspiracy against the United States, destruction/alteration/falsification of records, concealment/removal/mutilation of records, and aiding and abetting. Prosecutors allege he and coconspirators concealed communications via a personal Gmail to dodge FOIA requests related to COVID-19 research grants, sought to counter the lab-origin narrative, and accepted gifts as part of the scheme. If convicted, penalties can reach up to 5 years for conspiracy, up to 20 years per destruction/falsification count, and up to 3 years per concealment count. The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated; Morens is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
Emails show four NIAID staffers were ordered to remove the words “biodefense” and “pandemic preparedness” from the institute’s site, a move experts say could hamper future infectious-disease readiness amid a broader NIH reorganization and workforce cuts; the change signals a deprioritization of these traditional research pillars, potentially weakening the U.S. response to evolving pathogens.
Nature reports that the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will deprioritize biodefense and pandemic preparedness, scrubbing those terms from its pages as it shifts toward basic immunology and other domestic infectious-disease work. About a third of its $6.6 billion budget funds emerging infectious diseases and biodefense, and the move accompanies leadership changes and a review of grant portfolios, raising concerns about readiness for evolving pathogens.
Nature Medicine outlines NIAID’s new strategic vision to prepare for future infectious threats by strengthening patient-focused care today through accelerated translational research, better data use, and nimble cross-NIH collaboration.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has released a research agenda for H5N1 influenza, focusing on understanding virus biology, developing prevention and treatment strategies, and improving detection methods. This plan aims to address the current H5N1 outbreak in U.S. dairy cows and potential human-to-human transmission, leveraging both domestic and international research infrastructures.
Scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) have identified potential targets for designing treatments and vaccines for the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a common virus that can lead to various cancers and other health issues. Their research focused on a viral protein called gp42, and they discovered two monoclonal antibodies that interact with distinct sites on gp42, showing promise in preventing EBV infection and related diseases in mice. The findings could lead to the development of antibody-based treatments and vaccines for EBV, benefiting individuals at risk of severe or fatal EBV disease.
Three different HIV antibodies, including a human broadly neutralizing antibody and two antibodies isolated from previously vaccinated monkeys, have been shown to protect monkeys from acquiring simian-HIV (SHIV) in a proof-of-concept study. The antibodies target the fusion peptide, a site on an HIV surface protein that helps the virus fuse with and enter cells. This study, led by the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, demonstrates that fusion peptide-directed antibodies can provide protection against SHIV and may inform the development of a preventive HIV vaccine for humans.
A Phase 1 clinical trial of a preventive HIV vaccine candidate called VIR-1388 has begun enrollment in the United States and South Africa. The vaccine, which uses a cytomegalovirus (CMV) vector, aims to instruct the immune system to produce T cells that can recognize HIV and prevent chronic infection. The trial, sponsored by Vir Biotechnology and conducted through the NIAID-funded HIV Vaccine Trials Network, will enroll 95 HIV-negative participants and evaluate the vaccine's safety and ability to induce an HIV-specific immune response. Initial results are expected in late 2024.