NIAID’s Advisory Council convened for the 206th time on January 30, 2024, and, notably, it was the first meeting at which NIAID Director Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo shared remarks before the full Council. It was also the first time that guest speaker Dr. Monica Bertagnolli, NIH Director, addressed our Council.
Below, we highlight several of the agenda topics and share Council-approved funding initiative concepts. The meeting was conducted virtually. If you missed the proceedings, you can watch a recording at NIAID Advisory Council Meeting—January 2024.
Council Remarks
Dr. Marrazzo began by welcoming meeting attendees, including ad hoc Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation Subcommittee Council members Dr. Gideon Lack, Professor of Pediatric Allergy at King’s College London, and Dr. Robert Wood, Professor of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Professor of International Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
To acquaint—or reacquaint—yourself with those serving on Council, go to Biographical Sketches of NIAID Council Members.
Staff News
Dr. Marrazzo noted several personnel changes that matter for our Institute and extramural community, starting with Dr. Monica Bertagnolli’s confirmation as NIH Director. Dr. Bertagnolli is the first surgeon and second woman to hold that position; previously she was Director of the National Cancer Institute.
Following her appointment, Dr. Larry Tabak resumed his role as NIH Principal Deputy Director and Dr. W. Kimryn Rathmell became the 17th Director of the National Cancer Institute.
Within NIH’s Office of the Director, Dr. Tara Schwetz became Director of NIH’s Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives; Kate Klimczak is now NIH Associate Director for Legislative Policy and Analysis; Dr. Lyric Jorgenson was named NIH Associate Director for Science Policy and Director of NIH’s Office of Science Policy; and Dr. Victoria Shanmugam is now Director of NIH’s Office of Autoimmune Disease Research within the Office of Research on Women’s Health.
NIAID has undergone some staffing transitions as well:
- Dr. Mike Mowatt, Director of NIAID’s Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Office (TTIPO), has retired. TTIPO’s acting Director is Dr. Surekha Vathyam.
- Brendan Cole was named Chief of the Workforce Operations, Communications, and Reporting Branch within our Division of AIDS.
- Dr. Irini Sereti is now Chief of a new Division of Intramural Research laboratory that merges our Laboratory of Immunoregulation and Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology.
- Dr. Patrick Hanley was named Chief of the Rocky Mountain Veterinary Branch.
- Judit O’Connor is now Director of NIAID’s Office of Mission Integration and Financial Management.
Dr. Marrazzo next recognized the passing of Dr. Ada Adimora on January 1, 2024. She had served on NIAID’s Advisory Council and AIDS Research Advisory Committee (ARAC) from November 2011 to October 2015. She was the Sarah Graham Kenan Distinguished Professor of Medicine at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Dr. Marrazzo also praised Dr. Karin Bok, Director of Pandemic Preparedness and Emergency Response at NIAID’s Vaccine Research Center, who was awarded the HHS Secretary’s Award for Meritorious Service.
Meetings and Events
In December, NIAID participated in President Joe Biden’s visit to the NIH Clinical Center to discuss efforts to reduce the costs of prescription drugs. Then, in January, Dr. Anthony Fauci, who served as NIAID Director for nearly 40 years, returned for a portrait unveiling in celebration of his distinguished career.
Two international delegations visited NIAID in recent months. Five scientists from the Cuban Academy of Sciences toured the Vaccine Research Center as part of their day-long visit to NIH, which focused in part on dengue virus. A delegation from the Serum Institute of India met with leadership from across NIAID to discuss ongoing and new areas for collaboration on therapeutic and vaccine manufacturing.
Policy Matters
Dr. Marrazzo then summarized a series of key policy matters set to impact NIH and NIAID, many of which have also been described in this newsletter:
- NIH will implement a simplified peer review framework beginning with applications due on or after January 25, 2025.
- NIH designated people living with disabilities as a Population with Health Disparities.
- The White House established a new Initiative on Women’s Health Research within the Office of the First Lady.
- NIH’s Advisory Committee to the Director made recommendations to improve NIH-supported postdoctoral training.
NIAID is also embarking on the development of a new Strategic Plan, our first such update since 2017. Dr. Marrazzo took time to explain her vision of which themes and strategic priorities would best serve the Institute over the 5-year period ahead.
Budget News
Dr. Marrazzo then discussed NIAID’s budget outlook—note: the information she shared on January 30, 2024, remains accurate at the time of this article’s publication on February 21, 2024.
NIAID is operating under a continuing resolution (CR) that is set to expire on March 8, 2024. Congress continues to work toward an agreement on the fiscal year (FY) 2024 annual appropriation.
Earlier committee drafts of the FY 2024 appropriation in the House and the Senate had NIAID’s budget decreasing or remaining flat, respectively. NIAID’s FY 2023 enacted budget was $6,562 billion. While operating under the current CR, NIAID is funded at the FY 2023 level-rate.
Dr. Marrazzo then showed NIAID’s annual budget appropriations since FY 2020, acknowledging that NIAID has long enjoyed steady budget increases.
Next, Dr. Marrazzo reviewed NIAID’s Financial Management Plan, which provisionally sets paylines and award reductions designed to maintain a high success rate amid our uncertain FY 2024 budget situation. She expressed hope that the Institute could revisit certain budget decisions following the enactment of an FY 2024 annual appropriation.
Legislative and Outreach Activities
Late last year, NIAID hosted visits from the Majority Clerk of the Senate L-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee and bipartisan bicameral L-HHS staff. NIAID leadership and staff also met with congressional staff to discuss priority health research topics as well as our work at NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories and the Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick.
Scientific Updates
Dr. Marrazzo reviewed a variety of research developments. To start, a recent spike in SARS-CoV-2 viral activity in wastewater has not been matched by similar spikes in COVID-19 hospitalizations or deaths. She noted that NIAID has long maintained NIH COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines and explained that Long COVID and its pathology remain a research focus for the Institute.
Investigators in NIAID’s Division of Intramural Research compared HIV Vaccine Study participants and long-term non-progressors to find that, while both groups generated large numbers of CD8+ T cells that recognized HIV, the HIV Vaccine Study participants generated CD8+ T cells that had low cytotoxic capacity attributable to impaired degranulation. Dr. Marrazzo noted the research will inform future vaccine strategies to overcome reduced TCR sensitivity.
NIAID’s Vaccine Research Center completed a proof-of-concept study using fusion peptide-directed antibodies. Three antibodies provided protection in a SHIV challenge model, which supports further development of HIV-1 vaccines that can elicit broad and potent fusion peptide-directed responses.
Dr. Marrazzo next discussed a PrEPVacc study combining evaluation of HIV vaccines and PrEP at the same time, which was halted after an independent data monitoring committee concluded there was little to no chance the study would demonstrate efficacy.
She reported that NIAID is conducting a Phase I clinical trial of VIR-1388 in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Vir Biotechnology.
NIAID also sponsored three clinical studies to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics, and antimicrobial activity of zoliflodacin in volunteers. A Phase III trial has since shown the oral antibiotic inhibits replication of bacterial DNA and thus is a treatment option for uncomplicated gonorrhea.
Dr. Marrazzo described why the Institute is launching new research initiatives to address surging syphilis rates among newborns and is working to obtain high-quality syphilis specimens for laboratories for diagnostics research.
Finally, she relayed that studies of Doxy-PEP for sexually transmitted infections have had different outcomes in different populations. Notably, MSM and transgender women in the United States who took medication within 72 hours of having condomless sex experienced a two-thirds reduction in incidence of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia. However, a similar study among Kenyan, cis women did not yield a similar effect, perhaps due to shortcomings in participant adherence.
Guest Presentation: NIH Director Dr. Monica Bertagnolli
Dr. Bertagnolli began her presentation by introducing herself to our Advisory Council, describing how her background and career experiences have informed her passion to further NIH’s mission to support health research.
She then addressed several topics that will be priorities as she begins her tenure as NIH Director.
She explained that early-career scientists must receive greater support from NIH, particularly at the level of postdoctoral training. Dr. Bertagnolli is exploring activities and programs that could broaden and encourage the pool of NIH-supported postdoctoral scholars.
NIH’s budget is a matter of concern for Dr. Bertagnolli. She recognized that NIH leaves great ideas and potential breakthrough advances unfunded each year, and a flat budget could exacerbate that unfortunate reality.
Dr. Bertagnolli expressed worry that the health of the U.S. population is declining, as measured by life expectancy. At the same time, health expenditures in the United States are increasing. She noted that the trends extend beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, and identified substance use, suicide, and cardiometabolic diseases as major drivers.
Looking forward, Dr. Bertagnolli elucidated a guiding principle: NIH’s work is not finished upon delivering scientific discoveries; rather, our work is finished when all people are living long and healthy lives. NIH must not overlook community stakeholders as equal participants in biomedical research endeavors.
To conclude, she described her intention to better integrate primary care with research, in part by improving the quality and consistency of research data, as well as refining data analytics and study design. To that end, NIH will serve as an advocate for advanced scientific methods to reach all researchers and patients.
Subcommittee Summaries
At each Council session, scientific subcommittees review and approve concepts for NIAID initiatives, which are targeted research funding opportunities. While not all approved concepts become funding opportunities ultimately, concepts highlight the Institute’s research interests and can be good topics for investigator-initiated applications.
NIAID scientific staff presented our January concepts and subcommittees discussed them in the following videocast recordings:
- AIDS Research Advisory Committee
- Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation Subcommittee
- Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Subcommittee
Find text summaries of the approved concepts on these webpages: