About

In collaboration with industry and nonprofit partners, the Kovarova Lab is developing long-acting injectable (LAI) formulations of new and highly effective anti-tuberculosis (TB) drugs. Tuberculosis is a chronic deadly disease with the leading cause of infectious disease deaths. Existing TB treatments of active TB include a 2-month intensive phase of a daily 4-drug oral regimen followed by a 4-month continuation phase of a daily 2-drug oral regimen. Non-adherence to TB drug regimens occurs most often in the continuation phase and can have grave consequences including loss of therapeutic effectiveness, increased transmission, and the development of drug resistance. LAIs address the critical barrier of patient adherence by replacing daily, multi-pill regimens with sustained-release injectables such that only one or a few injections may be sufficient for successful TB treatment. Many infectious diseases are caused by human-specific pathogens. Animal models that are used for pre-clinical assessments of new treatments often fail to replicate how pathogens behave in humans because their immune systems and cell receptors differ. In our laboratory, we are using humanized mice, that are engrafted with human immune cells and tissues. The lab is using this model to study new approaches in treatment and prevention of infectious diseases caused by human-specific pathogens including HIV/AIDS and respiratory disease.

In the news

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  IGHID Investigators Participate in CROI Conference

  Investigators with the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases (IGHID) participated in the 2025 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in San Francisco, California, March 9-12. Following are some highlights.   In a CROI preview, Joe Eron, MD, was interviewed for the “Going Anti-Viral” IAS-USA podcast, discussing the state of HIV cure research … Read more

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  Kovarova Receives Grant to Develop Long-Acting Tuberculosis Treatment Option for Low- and Middle-Income Countries

  Martina Kovarova, PhD, a member of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, and associate professor of infectious diseases, has received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new Tuberculosis treatment options using ISFI (in-situ forming implant) technology. The TB Alliance, the global not-for-profit developer of TB drugs, is collaborating … Read more

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  Penile HIV Infection is Effectively Prevented by Antiretroviral Treatment

  Researchers at the UNC School of Medicine’s International Center for the Advancement of Translational Science and the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases have developed a new approach for the detailed evaluation of HIV infection throughout the entire male genital tract, HIV acquisition via the penis and the efficient prevention of penile HIV infection. … Read more

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  Scientists Create Long-acting Injectable Drug Delivery System for Tuberculosis

  Led by Martina Kovarova, PhD, Miriam Braunstein, PhD, and J. Victor Garcia, PhD, UNC School of Medicine researchers showed in vivo efficacy of a long-acting injectable formulation of the anti-TB drug rifabutin. In 2020, more than 1.5 million people around the world died of tuberculosis, marking the first time in more than a decade that … Read more

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