Emerging Infectious Disease Research and Countermeasures

Virologist Kyle Rosenke, Ph.D., using a centrifuge inside a BSL-4 suite at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories Integrated Research Facility. A centrifuge rotor tool is in the foreground.

Credit: NIAID

NIAID supports research and early development of medical countermeasures against threats from infectious diseases, radiation exposure and chemical threats to the civilian population.

Why Are Emerging Infectious Disease Research, Countermeasures, and Related Programs an Area of Interest for NIAID?

After the events of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent anthrax mailings, emerging infectious disease research and countermeasures became an important element of the NIAID mission. In 2003, NIAID was assigned lead responsibility within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research and early development of medical countermeasures against infectious disease threats and radiation exposure. NIAID later assumed responsibility for coordinating the NIH‐wide effort to develop medical countermeasures against chemical threats to the civilian population.

How Is NIAID Addressing This Critical Topic?

Because new potentially deadly disease-producing microorganisms, such as avian influenza, may be naturally occurring as well as deliberately introduced, NIAID’s research related to this critical topic is integrated into its larger emerging and re‐emerging infectious diseases portfolio. While NIAID continues to focus on developing drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics for these disease agents, the research focus has evolved from the traditional “one bug–one drug” approach to a more flexible strategy using sophisticated genomic and proteomic platforms focused on developing broad‐spectrum therapies effective against entire classes of disease-producing microorganisms.

Related Programs

• Chemical Countermeasures Research Program (CCRP) - The CCRP supports the discovery and early development of medical countermeasures (MCMs) to advance the nation's medical and public health preparedness for, response to, and recovery from high consequence chemical disasters and emergencies.
• Radiation and Nuclear Countermeasures Program (RNCP) - The RNCP is a program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Institutes of Health. The program is coordinated by the NIAID.