麻豆传媒

Dr. Parker is a senior fellow for the Pandemic and Biosecurity Policy Programs at the Scowcroft Institute of International Affairs, Bush School of Government and Public Service; associate dean for Global One Health, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine

Shane Crotty, Ph.D., and his team study immunity against infectious diseases. They investigate how the immune system remembers infections and vaccines. By remembering infections and vaccines, the body is protected from becoming infected in the future. Vaccines are one of the most cost-effective medical treatments in modern civilization and are responsible for saving millions of lives. Yet, good vaccines are very difficult to design, and very few new vaccines have been made in the past 10 years. A better understanding of immune memory will facilitate the ability to make new vaccines. Dr. Tony Fauci, NIH, referred to some of the Crotty lab work as “exceedingly important to the field of immunogen design.”
Dr. Crotty is a member of the LJI Coronavirus Task Force. The Crotty Lab, in close collaboration with the lab of LJI Professor Alessandro Sette, Dr. Biol. Sci., was the first to publish a detailed analysis of the immune system’s response to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 (). The made a number of important findings. Most importantly, it showed that the immune system activates all three major branches of “adaptive immunity” (which learns to recognize specific viruses) to try to fight the virus: CD4 “helper” T cells , CD8 “killer” T cells, and antibodies. The LJI team found good immune responses to multiple different parts of SARS-CoV-2 (imagine the virus is made out of legos, and the immune system can recognize different individual legos), including the Spike protein, which is the main target of almost all COVID-19 vaccine efforts.
Dr. Crotty has a major focus studying human immune responses to vaccines. His lab is hard at work on candidate HIV vaccines with the CHAVID consortium. His lab is also hard at work on vaccine strategies for influenza, strep throat, and COVID-19. The Crotty lab studies new vaccine ideas and strategies that may be applicable to many diseases, based on a fundamental understanding of the underlying immune responses, and how the cells of the immune system interact. 
Dr. Crotty regularly does media outreach on vaccines and immunity to infectious diseases. Dr. Crotty is also the author of Ahead of the Curve, a biography of Nobel laureate scientist David Baltimore, published in 2001, and reviewed in The Wall Street Journal and other publications. He earned his B.S. in Biology and Writing from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1996, and his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology/Virology from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) in 2001.

Erica Ollmann Saphire, Ph.D. serves as President and CEO of the La Jolla Institute for Immunology. She is one of the world’s leading experts in pandemic and emerging viruses, such as Ebola, Marburg and Lassa. Dr. Saphire directs the Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Immunotherapeutic Consortium (VIC), an NIH-funded Center of Excellence in Translational Research. The VIC unites 43 previously competing academic, industrial and government labs across five continents to understand which antibodies are most effective in patients and to streamline the research pipeline to provide antibody therapeutics against Ebola, Marburg, Lassa and other viruses. Dr. Saphire's research explains, at the molecular level, how and why viruses like Ebola and Lassa are pathogenic and provides the roadmap for developing antibody-based treatments. Her team has solved the structures of the Ebola, Sudan, Marburg, Bundibugyo and Lassa virus glycoproteins, explained how they remodel these structures as they drive themselves into cells, how their proteins suppress immune function and where human antibodies can defeat these viruses. A recent discovery revealed why neutralizing antibodies had been so difficult to elicit against Lassa virus, and provided not only the templates for the needed vaccine, but the molecule itself: a Lassa surface glycoprotein engineered to remain in the right conformation to inspire the needed antibody response. This molecule is the basis for international vaccine efforts against Lassa.
Dr. Saphire is the recipient of numerous accolades and grants, including the Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering presented by President Obama at the White House; the Gallo Award for Scientific Excellence and Leadership from the Global Virus Network; young investigator awards from the International Congress of Antiviral Research, the American Society for Microbiology, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the MRC Centre for Virus Research in the United Kingdom; the Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease Award from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, and the Surhain Sidhu award for the most outstanding contribution to the field of diffraction by a person within five years of the Ph.D. Dr. Saphire has been awarded a Fulbright Global Scholar fellowship from the United States Department of State and a Mercator Fellowship from the German research foundation, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, to develop international collaborations around human health and molecular imaging through cryoelectron microscopy.
Dr. Saphire received a B.A. in biochemistry and cell biology and ecology and evolutionary biology from Rice University in Houston, Texas, and a Ph.D. in molecular biology from Scripps Research. She stayed on at Scripps Research as a Research Associate to conduct postdoctoral research and rose through the ranks to become a Professor in the Department of Immunology and Microbiology. In early 2019, Dr. Saphire joined La Jolla Institute for Immunology to establish a molecular imaging facility for cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) at the Institute. The extremely detailed images produced by cryo-EM reveal precisely how essential mechanisms of the immune system operate.

Dr. Rupp is a Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Section of Infectious Diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He is the Medical Director of The Nebraska Medical Center Department of Healthcare Epidemiology and co-Director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program.

Dr. Rupp received his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas and holds a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas, Austin, Texas. He underwent internship and residency training in Internal Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University and completed a Fellowship in Infectious Diseases at VCU.

He is a Diplomate, American Board of Internal Medicine, and in the subspecialty area of Infectious Diseases. He is a Fellow of the Society for Hospital Epidemiology of America (SHEA), American College of Physicians (ACP), and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA). He is a Past-President of SHEA and is a past-president of ASM Division L (Infection Control/Hospital Epidemiology). Dr Rupp has served as a consultant for the US Food and Drug Administration as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Rupp has published over 300 articles, chapters and abstracts and is the editor of a textbook entitled 鈥淏iofilms, Infections, and Antimicrobial Therapy.鈥� He frequently presents papers at national and international meetings, serves as a guest lecturer, and is an active teacher and researcher. Dr. Rupp鈥檚 research interests are in the areas of staphylococcal disease, healthcare-associated infections, and antimicrobial resistance.

In 2009, she joined the Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine at McMaster University and was promoted to associate professor in 2014. In 2019, she was promoted to tenure professor in the same department. The Bowdish lab focuses primarily on the effects of aging on the immune system, specifically macrophages. Her lab has been able to elucidate a mechanistic explanation for how aging alters myeloid cells and how these cells increase susceptibility to pneumococcal pneumonia. In 2017, the Bowdish lab demonstrated that age-associated gut microbe dysbiosis in mice increases age-associated inflammation. Bowdish currently holds an h-index score of 38. Bowdish's published works have received much media attention and continue to contribute more information regarding the interplay between the immune system, the gut microbiota, susceptibility to infection and aging.

Mobeen Rathore, MD, is chief of infectious diseases for UF Health Jacksonville and Wolfson Children's Hospital, and Professor and Associate Chair for the UF College of Medicine, Jacksonville. He is the Founding Director of UF Center for HIV/AIDS Research, Education and Service. Dr. Rathore has served on the board of Wolfson Children’s Hospital and UF Jacksonville practice plan. Dr. Rathore is an infectious disease specialist in Jacksonville, FL, and has been practicing for 29 years. He graduated from King Edward Med College in 1983 and specializes in infectious disease medicine. Dr. Rathore specializes in Pediatric Infectious Diseases cares for children through the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of infectious diseases. Dr. Rathore has not only closed the “town-and-gown” gap in medicine, but he is also very active in the community serving on the boards of OneJax (a diversity/inclusion advocacy organization) and Environmental Protection Board. He is President of the board of MASS free clinic for the uninsured and President-elect of Leadership Jacksonville. A fervent advocate for all children and especially children with HIV he has been instrumental in the improvement of HIV care of children and pregnant women in the State of Florida. He is the Medical Director of Children’s Medical Service for Northeast Florida. Dr. Rathore is a nominee for President-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Sumit Chanda earned his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 2001, and received his post-doctoral training at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation (GNF). He subsequently transitioned to a Group Leader position, and established his research group in the Division of Cellular Genomics at GNF. In 2007, he joined the Infectious and Inflammatory Disease Center at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute as an Associate Professor. Dr. Chanda also holds an Adjunct Professor appointment at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, as well as a Visiting Scientist position at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation.

Shandy Dearth has spent most of her career focusing on infectious disease surveillance, emergency preparedness planning and response, and public health informatics. Prior to joining the FSPH, she was the Director of an international public health association that brought together public health practitioners and public health researchers who focused on health data surveillance projects. Prior to her work with the non-profit, Ms. Dearth was the Administrator in the Epidemiology Department of a local health department. She is currently a member of her community's park advisory council and is a proponent of advocating for more public health resources in Indiana.

David S. Perlin, Ph.D. is Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President of the Center for Discovery and Innovation (CDI); Professor of Medical Sciences at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine; Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences; and Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

His research emphasizes studies to diagnose and overcome drug-resistant fungal and bacterial infections in cancer, transplant and other high-risk patients by exploiting insights obtained from molecular investigations of drug resistance, pathogenicity, and host response to improve current therapies and develop novel drugs and diagnostics. During COVID-19, Perlin and his CDI colleagues were instrumental in developing new diagnostics for the virus and its variants, as well as investigating the potential of convalescent plasma and other therapies. 

Escolano investigates new vaccination approaches for highly mutating viruses. She received her bachelor’s of science degree from the University of Oviedo, Spain, and University of Turku, Finland, and a master’s degree from Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa, Madrid, and the Genome Research Institute (GRI), Cincinnati, Ohio. She obtained her Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology from the Spanish National Center for Cardiovascular Research and Autonoma University, Madrid, and completed her postdoctoral training at The Rockefeller University, New York.

Associate Professor and Assistant Dean of Strategy & Accreditation at Creighton University鈥檚 School of Medicine.
Dr. Rengua Vivekanandan, M.D., is an infectious disease expert and an award-winning physician whose research and experience positions her as a prominent voice on public health, epidemiology, gender equity in health care, organ transplant outcomes and antibiotics stewardship. Dr. Vivekanandan is also the Director of Antimicrobial Stewardship & Hospital Epidemiology at CHI Health Creighton University Medical Center 鈥� Bergan Mercy.
Dr. Vivekanandan was named a 2021 Champion of Humanistic Care Award winner by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation. She earned a Distinguished Faculty Service Award from Creighton University and received The Walter J. O鈥橠onohue, Jr. Award from the Nebraska Chapter of the American College of Physicians. She was named a 40 Under 40 Honor by the Midlands Business Journal in 2019 and she was a finalist for the Inspire: Celebrating Women鈥檚 Leadership Award for Excellence in Healthcare in 2022.
In addition to publishing numerous research papers and articles, Dr. Vivekanandan is a regular presenter at national conferences, educational webinars and professional seminars. She mentors and collaborates with medical students, residents and fellows. Dr. Vivekanandan recently served as a member of the Big East Conference鈥檚 COVID-19 Task Force to help safely guide athletic departments through the pandemic.

Dr. Tal Einav’s accomplishments included the development of sophisticated computational methods to understand viral behavior and predict how individuals react to vaccination or infection. This research earned Einav a prestigious Damon Runyon Quantitative Biology Fellowship and emphasized the importance of pursuing machine learning to analyze big data in immunology.
“We have these tremendous datasets that we’re just barely tapping into,” says Einav. These data allow Einav to understand the immune response in different contexts, from the young to the elderly, from healthy people to individuals who are immunocompromised. All with the goal to discover key patterns that let us understand and harness our immunity. Einav’s work has already demonstrated that blending biophysics and computer science enables researchers to predict the antibody response against new viral variants.
This work paves the way for a fundamentally new form of personalized medicine. For example, Einav imagines tailoring an individualized vaccine strain or dosage based on a patient’s specific antibody repertoire to create a stronger response that lasts for years, if not their entire life.

, is a professor of clinical medicine in the Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of California, San Diego. She sees patients in the Owen Clinic and the infectious diseases clinic. She also cares for people during hospital stays.
Dr. Torriani is medical director of the UC San Diego Infection Prevention and Clinical Epidemiology and the tuberculosis control units at UC San Diego Health. In collaboration with Atlas Public Health, she has been instrumental in creating an extensive electronic microbiology surveillance and pharmacy utilization program called Guardian that allows for internal data mining, surveillance, unit-specific antibiogram production, and external reporting of contagious infections to San Diego Public Health and to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) of Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI).
Since 2010, Dr. Torriani has served on the Metrics Group for CA HAI Reporting, an independent group of experts discussing best standards and methods for HAI reporting in California. 
She is fluent in five languages: Italian, French, German, Spanish and English.

Wendy Puryear is a molecular virologist at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University with a strong interest in viral evolution and adaptation, particularly how host and environmental factors can impact overall viral fitness and influence viral evolution. Her current research aims to better understand how influenza adapts from an avian host to a mammalian host, as well as the role of environmental stability in allowing the virus to persist and transmit across species. Current work centers heavily on North Atlantic grey seals, seabirds, and the coastal environment.

Dr. Linden Hu is the Paul and Elaine Chervinsky Professor of Immunology at Tufts University School of Medicine. Dr. Hu received his A.B. and M.D. from Brown University. He completed training in Infectious Diseases at Tufts Medical Center. His laboratory works on multiple aspects of Lyme disease including vaccine development, new diagnostics and treatments, and understanding interactions between Borrelia burgdorferi and its tick and animal hosts. Most recently, his lab has been researching how the organism evades the host immune response and how human genetic mutations may alter the ability of the bacterial host to control inflammatory responses. The lab is also partnering with other laboratories on strategies to eradicate tick borne pathogens from their wild reservoirs.

Cari Vanderpool is a professor of microbiology and the associate dean for research in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Illinois.
She joined the University of Illinois faculty in 2006 after completing her PhD at the University of Minnesota and postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health. Her research focuses on the fundamental biology of bacteria and the viruses that infect them (bacteriophages or phages). Her research group uses tools of biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, and genomics to investigate bacterial interactions with each other and with their plant and animal hosts. One of the overall goals of her research is to understand how bacteria sense different environmental conditions and respond by changing their gene expression, cellular structure, and behaviors in ways that allow them to succeed in very diverse and sometimes harsh environments. This work is necessary to reveal how bacteria in the complex communities known as microbiomes contribute to human and animal and plant health.  
Phages are the most abundant biological entity on the planet and bacteria must constantly defend themselves against this natural predator. Dr. Vanderpool’s group is studying how phages interact with an array of bacterial species and how these interactions shape bacterial populations in a variety of natural environments, from the human gut to the soil. Bacteria are engaged in an “arms race” with the phages that target them, characterized by bacterial defense and phage counter-defense mechanisms and Dr. Vanderpool’s group is also studying these processes. There is a great deal of interest in harnessing the natural bacterial killing properties of phages for a range of biotechnology applications. Phages show special promise as an alternative to antibiotic therapies, and thus may help solve the looming antibiotic resistance crisis. Dr. Vanderpool’s group is embarking on new applied research directions that may lead to breakthroughs in use of phages as therapies for a range of human diseases.
For more about her research, visit . 

Research Topics
Genetics, Genomics, Metabolic Regulation, Microbial Physiology, Regulation of Gene Expression, RNA Biology, Signal Transduction

Education

BS Microbiology, Purdue University, 1998
PhD Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology, University of Minnesota, 1998-2003
Postdoctoral Fellow, National Cancer Institute, 2003-2006