IDM News

Leading the charge in combatting tick-borne viruses

Assistant Professor Priscila Da Silva Castanha and team awarded Pitt Momentum Funds.

Assistant Professor Priscila Da Silva Castanha, leading a team from the Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, has been awarded Pitt Momentum Funds for her innovative research on the Powassan virus (POWV), an emerging tick-borne virus posing significant public health risks.

Why the mpox outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is worrying disease docs

"It's just a matter of time, if nothing is done, that the transmission crosses the border in the African region and, again, globally," says Jean Nachega associate professor of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology and Epidemiology.

Advancing Global One Health Partnerships with Vietnam

Massive public-health experiment sends vaccination rates soaring

“The investigators made a great effort to bring vaccines to remote communities,” says Jean Nachega associate professor of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology and Epidemiology.

Early birds prepare for avian flu threat

Among those alarmed by a possible future pandemic risk was Simon Barratt-Boyes, professor of infectious diseases and microbiology.

Brazil has a dengue emergency, portending a health crisis for the Americas

“Right now you have serotypes circulating in Brazil that have not circulated in 20 years,” said Ernesto Marques, associate professor of infectious diseases and microbiology.

Teagen O’Malley and Sarah Krier receive CTSI Dissemination and Implementation Science Pilot competition funding

Teagen O’Malley (IDM), along with co-investigators Jessie Burke (BCHS), Isabel Janmey (UPMC), and Sarah Krier (IDM) received CTSI Dissemination and Implementation Science Pilot competition funding.

Pitt Public Health honors alumni at awards ceremony

The University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health recognized nine alumni for their outstanding service to the field of public health at an awards ceremony.

Wars can cause infectious disease outbreaks, posing potential threat to Northeast Ohio

Lawrence Kingsley, emeritus professor of infectious diseases and microbiology, said: “Globally, the leading cause of death is infectious diseases."

WTAE Listens: Medical breakthroughs in Pittsburgh

WTAE Listens puts the focus on two medical breakthroughs in Pittsburgh: the polio vaccine and organ transplantation.

New Grants Awarded

Suresh Kuchipudi, PhD, MVSc, MBA, professor and chair, Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology has been awarded three new grants. 

Suresh Kuchipudi, PhD, MVSc, MBA, professor and chair, Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, is leading studies to understand the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 funded by three U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) grants totaling $2.7 million.

How evasive and transmissible is the newest omicron offshoot, BA.2.86, that causes COVID-19? 4 questions answered

The Conversation asked infectious diseases and microbiology Chair Suresh Kuchipudi to explain what researchers know about BA.2.86’s ability to dodge immune protection and whether it causes more severe infection than its predecessors.

Pitt study points to new opportunities for HIV treatment

"It seems that animals with SIV who don't progress (to AIDS) have better inflammation control," said Cristian Apetrei.

Pitt’s Center for Vaccine Research is already preparing for the next pandemic

Amy Hartman, studies a group of mosquito-borne viruses called bunyaviruses. One line of her research is working to understand on a molecular level how the Rift Valley fever virus can infect animals as diverse as mosquitoes, cows and humans.

Microbiome could be key in preventing HIV progression

“It was a previous study with disappointing results that put us on the path to this latest discovery,” said lead author Cristian Apetrei.