Category: Research

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Brown University, the University of Notre Dame, and Ethiopia’s Ministry of Health have found that malaria parasites carrying genetic markers associated with resistance...

Researchers with the UNC Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases have identified persistent Giardia infections as a significant risk factor for impaired linear growth, independent of intestinal inflammation.  CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — A study led by PhD candidate Lester Gutiérrez, MS, with Luther Bartelt, MD, DTM&H, and Sylvia Becker-Dreps,...

Research highlights widespread sensitization to alpha-gal in areas where lone star ticks are common, while emphasizing the importance of symptom-based diagnosis.  Chapel Hill, NC — A new study examining blood donor samples from across the U.S. has found that nearly one in four adults in states with the highest rates...

A new study co-authored by Sylvia Becker-Dreps, MD, MPH, member of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, as well as the Joan C. and Robert Huntley Professor of Family Medicine and Epidemiology, and Filemón Bucardo, PhD, a senior researcher at UNC-Chapel Hill, offers new insight into how a common intestinal...

Chapel Hill, NC — A new comprehensive scoping review led by researchers at the UNC Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases finds definitions of “persistence” in HIV pre‑exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) research vary widely across studies, making it difficult to compare outcomes, evaluate interventions, and inform public health decision‑making. If...

Many people in need of mental health care end up in prisons or jails, which are ill-equipped to provide treatment. In a commentary in the North Carolina Medical Journal‘s Spring 2026 issue on mental health, Evan Ashkin, MD; Theodore Zarzar, MD; and David Rosen, MD, PhD, MSPH, discuss legal system...

T-cells are the immune system’s frontline defenders with a crucial role in controlling HIV. In a milestone clinical trial published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers with the UNC Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases (IGHID) at the UNC School of Medicine have demonstrated that new vaccines can...

A team of researchers with the UNC Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases has quantified the link between vision impairment and academic performance in a new study of primary school students in Tanzania. Led by Joy Noel Baumgartner, PhD, MSSW, professor of social work, with Emily Gower, PhD, associate...

Malaria remains a threat to young children in refugee settlements, where displacement, temporary housing, and limited access to healthcare reduce the effectiveness of conventional prevention tools. There are an estimated 35 million refugees in Africa alone with women and children comprising more than 80% of those displaced. New arrivals lack...

Chapel Hill, NC – Less than half of people with HIV in the U.S. stay consistently connected to outpatient HIV care—a gap that limits access to lifesaving medications and increases the risk of HIV transmission. Hospitalizations are especially common among people who are already disconnected from care. Among the nearly...

A new study led by Guochun Jiang, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the UNC School of Medicine, and researcher with the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases and UNC HIV Cure Center, has found that a drug named citarinostat is effective at disrupting...

Chapel Hill, NC – A new project led by Thibaut Davy-Mendez, PhD, MSPH, at the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, funded by the Gilead Research Scholars Program, is taking aim at a longstanding gap in HIV care: accurately predicting who is at highest risk for cardiovascular disease. Backed by a two-year...