Author Archives: Kim Morris

WUNC Producer Charlie Shelton-Ormond talked with Cindy Gay, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases, the primary investigator of a Phase 3 clinical trial for a COVID vaccine taking place at UNC-Chapel Hill. Learn more from the UNC Health and UNC School of Medicine Newsroom.

The third episode of a new series produced by Medscape Video features the work of three members of the UNC Behavior and Technology Lab in the division of infectious diseases. The series, titled “Confronting the HIV Epidemic,” includes interviews with BATLab Director Lisa Hightow-Weidman, MD, MPH; BATLAB Global Division Director Kate Muessig, PhD; and Lina Rosengren-Hovee, MD, MPH, MS, the...

At the onset of the global pandemic, infectious disease colleagues at Carolina and across the U.S. pivoted quickly and formed the COVID Prevention Network (CoVPN). The network coordinates multiple studies, including the current phase 3 clinical trial for Moderna’s mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine. The overall goal of the national study is to...

David Weber, MD, MPH, professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases, professor of pediatrics, and professor of epidemiology with the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, was featured in a Blue Ridge Public Radio story that recognized how Mission Health decides to test surgery patients for COVID-19. ...

Emily Sickbert-Bennett, PhD, MS, associate professor of infectious diseases, explained to USA Today that even if a farm doesn’t require it, people should practice social distancing by staying six feet apart from others, and always wear a face mask while enjoying outdoor activities such as apple picking. “Wearing your mask...

John Buse, MD, PhD, will lead the UNC-Chapel Hill site for a collaborative NIH research effort to discover new forms of diabetes, understand their differences, and identify their causes. UNC-Chapel Hill is participating in a nationwide study funded by the National Institutes of Health that will seek to discover the...

In a WRAL interview, Melissa Sickbert-Bennett, PhD, MS, associate professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases, commented on superspreader events and precautions that are needed after a recent White House ceremony was found to be linked to eight coronavirus cases. “The mask is our best protection to both...

Researchers at Oxford and UNC-Chapel Hill, led by Andrew Moon, MD, MPH, and Sidney Barritt, MD, found increased mortality rates among COVID-19 patients with advanced cirrhosis and alcohol-related liver disease. The study, published in the Journal of Hepatology, found that mortality from COVID-19 was particularly high among patients with more advanced...

Cindy Gay, MD, MPH, associate professor in the division of infectious diseases, and Noshima Darden-Tabb, community engagement manager for Moderna’s UNC COVID-19 trial site, discussed the challenges associated with recruiting participants that represent those most impacted by the virus. In NC Health News, they acknowledge the barriers and mistrust of...

New research by scientists at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and colleagues shows the potential for targeting a specific circular RNA, known as CDR1as, to attack lung squamous cell cancer. The UNC work was led by Chad Pecot, MD, associate professor of medicine in the division of oncology, and Emily...

The Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI), in partnership with the Center for Health Equity Research at UNC-Chapel Hill and Community-Campus Partnerships for Health, has received an $80 million award to serve as the coordinating and data collection center for a four-year program that will overcome barriers and increase uptake of...

Led by Natalie Bowman, MD MPH, assistant professor of medicine in infectious diseases, UNC researchers are studying COVID-19 prevalence, incidence, and risk factors for transmission among meat packing plant and farmworkers in a new observational study, COFF-NC (COVID-19 in Farming and Food processing industries in North Carolina). Meat packing plants...