NIAID conducts and supports research to better understand, treat, and ultimately prevent infectious and immune-mediated diseases. For more than 60 years, NIAID research has led to new therapies, vaccines, diagnostic tests, and other technologies that have improved the health of millions of people in the United States and abroad. This page highlights notable scientific advances made by NIAID laboratories and NIAID-funded researchers.
NIAID Research Journeys
Explore the stories behind how NIAID-funded basic and clinical research paved the way for the development of important therapeutics and vaccines.
Decades in the Making: mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines
Decades of NIH-supported laboratory research laid the groundwork for the rapid development of mRNA vaccines in the first 100 days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, two U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved mRNA vaccines have saved millions of lives.
First FDA-Approved Drug for Delaying T1D Onset
NIH-funded research helped pave the way for development of Teplizumab, the first FDA-approved therapeutic for delaying type 1 diabetes (T1D) onset in at-risk patients. This delay reduces the potential for severe long-term complications in patients, thereby improving their quality of life.
Safe and Effective RSV Protein Vaccines
NIAID-funded basic and clinical studies helped establish the fundamental knowledge necessary for the private sector to develop protein vaccines. These vaccines are safe and effective at preventing severe RSV in some target populations.
Accomplishments Over the Years
Selected NIAID Science News Highlights of 2020
In 2020, NIAID and its global partners rapidly leveraged their scientific infrastructure and expertise to conduct critical basic, preclinical, and clinical research to address the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Although considerable challenges remain, scientists have made enormous strides this year in understanding, preventing, and treating COVID-19. Other research brought us closer to a new option for HIV prevention, a shorter treatment regimen for drug-susceptible tuberculosis, and a potential new eczema treatment, among many other advances.