This project will characterize the safety, immunogenicity and protective efficacy of selected rLCMV/ts in mice.This contract involves virulence, immunogenecity and protective efficacy studies.

The Major goal is to test efficacy of novel monoclonal therapeutic in the Sudan virus NHP Model.

We will test the hypothesis that neonatal hyperoxia enhances sensitivity to IAV infection by inducing epigenetic changes in proliferating AEC2s that are maintained even when they become AEC1s and these changes are mediated by the persistent expression of Ki67. Understanding how neonatal hyperoxia shapes how AECs respond to IAV infection is important because the scientific discoveries will stimulate development of novel therapies designed to improve the health of people born preterm.

The goal of the project is to understand the pathways operative in sepsis and the necessity for improved therapies. Ee will develop a small molecule screening program using in silico drug design strategies based on the crystal and CryoEM structure of MCU-ligand interaction for identification and synthesis of novel small molecules that could be further tested for next generation MCU regulators.

The overall goal of this NYICE project is to determine the natural history of how influenza B virus (IBV) broadly neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies (BNhmAbs) are induced in response to seasonal vaccination and their ability to prevent IBV infection and transmission, and their mechanism of action. This knowledge will provide the basis for the development of immunotherapeutics to fill the existing gap for treatments against IBV.

Morbidity and mortality associated with human mammarenavirus infections involve a failure of the host's innate immune response to restrict virus multiplication at early stages of infection, thus compromising the initiation of an effective innate and adaptive immune response to control and eliminate the virus. Studies in this application will provide a better understanding of arenavirus-host innate defense interactions, which can facilitate the development of novel strategies to combat human pathogenic mammarenaviruses.

The overall goal of this application is to develop a new, more effective live-attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) capable of eliciting broadly cross-protective immune responses to conserved internal viral proteins - thereby providing the basis for a universal influenza vaccine.

We propose to study the efficiency (sensitivity/specificity) of a novel sustainable, easy-to-use diagnostic test to monitor drug resistant tuberculosis treatment using non-invasive specimens (i.e. sputum). We will focus in Mozambique, where TB is a major health issue and is under-reported due to lack of widely available diagnosis.

We propose to generate a recombinant LASV containing a codon deoptimized (CD) glycoprotein (GP) as a novel approach for the development of a LASV live-?attenuated vaccine (LAV). Moreover, rLASV/GPCD will provide us with a valid LASV surrogate that could be safely used in BSL2 facilities to facilitate the investigation of LASV by removing the obstacles posed by the requirement of BSL4 containment to work with live forms of LASV.

Our goal is to exploit under-utilized museum collections with molecular tools to understand the natural history of zoonotic pathogens transmitted by rodents. In AIM1 we will use a PCR-based method to identify rodents infected with human-parasitic schistosomes. In AIM2 we will use a sequence-capture array to identify individuals infected with major human pathogens that can describe the expansion and contraction of zoonoses across the landscape and through time.