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NIH awards Cohen, FHI $9.2 million for development of COVID prevention studies

July 21, 2020
The National Institutes of Health has awarded Myron Cohen, MD, director of UNC’s Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, and FHI 360 $9.2 million to support research through the new COVID Prevention Network (CoVPN). The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health has...

Institute research sampling, 2018-2020

July 7, 2020
By the spring of 2020, the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic caused many researchers affiliated with UNC’s Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases to pivot their studies to focus on testing, treatment and prevention of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Here, a look at some of the projects underway in the...

Parr, medical students conduct first study of tocilizumab in treating COVID-19

May 19, 2020
  In the first COVID-19 case series of tocilizumab in the United States, UNC-Chapel Hill researchers report sobering results. They say the drug should be used judiciously until randomized clinical trials determine tocilizumab’s true efficacy. Meanwhile, medical students sidelined from clinical rotations by the virus conducted the research with lightning...

‘Landmark’ study finds long-acting injectable drug highly effective in preventing HIV

May 18, 2020
  Large-scale study funded by NIAID and ViiV Healthcare halted early after cabotegravir, dosed every two months, shows higher efficacy than daily oral pill.   The decades-long search for a vaccine to prevent HIV reached a new milestone as results from HPTN 083, a global large-scale study, show that the...

Study finds three strains of resistant bacteria, identifying greater diversity

May 14, 2020
    A new study by the Multi-Drug-Resistant Organism Network of the Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group (ARLG) has found that strains of carbapenem-resistant enterobacterales (CRE), a major threat to vulnerable patient populations, are more diverse than previously thought. The MDRO Network is led by UNC Infectious Diseases investigator David van...

Boyce, Aiello team with state, local agencies to study COVID-19 cases with mild or no symptoms

May 6, 2020
Ross Boyce, MD, MSc, assistant professor of medicine in the infectious diseases division, and, Allison Aiello, PhD, MS, professor of epidemiology at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, are leading a study along with Aaron Fleischauer, PhD, MSPH, at NC Department of Health and Human Services and other...

Schranz receives NIH grant to study patient care for drug-use related heart infections

May 6, 2020
Asher Schranz, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases, has received a grant from the NIH National Institute on Drug Abuse for the project “Drug-use associated infective endocarditis: Post-hospitalization outcomes and patient treatment preferences.” Schranz’s research is broadly focused on the intersection of infectious diseases...

Pay-it-forward model increases STI testing and community health

April 27, 2020
Watch animation video explaining UNC Project-China’s STI pay-it-forward study. Gonorrhea and chlamydia are two common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) that increase HIV risk among many key populations, including gay and bisexual men. But most men are not tested for STIs, in part because of the cost and low community engagement....

Study addresses COVID-19 infection rates for household members

April 24, 2020
By Alyssa LaFaro As seven states now require masks and face coverings for visiting essential businesses or using public transportation, it seems like those spaces are where we are most at risk for COVID-19 infection. But, in truth, the riskiest place could be our homes — at least, if you live with someone...

Faculty affiliates turn focus to COVID-19 treatments, prevention research

April 6, 2020
  Researchers within UNC’s School of Medicine are working tirelessly to provide knowledge to impact the current COVID-19 pandemic and future pandemics. “UNC SOM is home to many world-renowned experts on infectious disease and virology,” says Blossom Damania, Boshamer Distinguished Professor and Vice Dean for Research at the UNC School...

Researchers receive up to $10.7 million to study chlamydia vaccine

May 30, 2019
  Chlamydia is the most prevalent bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the world. There is no vaccine to prevent infection. However, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in partnership with colleagues at other sites in the U.S., Europe and Australia, will receive up to $10.7...