Conquering Epidemics

We can never stop fighting

Humans and pathogens are locked in a bitter arms race—and the pathogens are winning. They are evolving to resist our best medicines, and humanity’s pipeline of effective antibiotic weapons is empty. Meanwhile, in a world of packed cities, constant travel, and a warming planet, the danger of a massive outbreak is more acute than ever.

We’re fighting on many fronts to make sure humanity is ready when the next big outbreak happens. Whether it’s a virulent new virus or a persistent killer like AIDS, TB, or Malaria, we’re determined to outsmart our infectious disease foes. We’re mining mountains of data to reveal clues about how these diseases spread. We’re cracking the pathogens’ biological codes. And we’re helping teams around the world build better systems for surveillance and response.

We’re stopping patient 0 from leading to patient 6.7 billion.

Defeating Malaria: From the Genes to the Globe
The Defeating Malaria Initiative aims to produce, transmit, and translate knowledge to support the control and ultimate eradication of malaria.
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Recent Stories

The latest on the coronavirus

Harvard Chan School experts offer comments and context about the coronavirus in a variety of media outlets.

Why ‘breakthrough’ COVID-19 cases happen

In spite of strongly protective vaccines, some “breakthrough” COVID-19 infections are to be expected because no vaccine is 100% effective.

Tracking emotional and behavioral issues in youth born to women with HIV

Among youth born to women with HIV, those who were born without HIV had worse behavioral functioning than those born with HIV, a new study found.

Atul Gawande nominated for senior USAID post

Public health expert, surgeon, and writer Atul Gawande has been nominated by President Joe Biden to lead global health development at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The danger of the Delta variant

The Delta variant of the coronavirus has been spreading rapidly throughout the U.S. and worldwide. Epidemiologist William Hanage discusses the threat.

Caroline Buckee
Associate Professor of Epidemiology

"One of the key things you want to know about an infectious disease is where is it spreading, how quickly, to which populations? Traditionally, we’ve had very few sources of data about how people move around. But today, everyone has a mobile phone."
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Yonatan Grad
Melvin J. and Geraldine L. Glimcher Assistant Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases

"In the future, our understanding of the diversity of pathogen species, and the interaction between host and pathogen, will improve."
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Jessica Cohen
Bruce A. Beal, Robert L. Beal, and Alexander S. Beal Associate Professor of Global Health

"Over the next 30 to 50 years, a game changer would be a highly effective malaria vaccine... Meanwhile, lots of kids with malaria are misdiagnosed or undertreated. A vaccine would allow us to circumvent these many behavioral barriers."
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Jeff Wagner
Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases

"In the near future, we’re going to see rapid diagnostic tests: for example, a simple and cheap readout that says whether a person has Zika or dengue—two viruses with similar symptoms."
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