Infectious disease

Apicomplexan parasites are responsible for several prevalent infectious diseases including malaria. Whitehead Institute Member Sebastian Lourido and colleagues identified a protein complex that the parasites require for a critical step in invading host cells.

Research from Whitehead Institute Member Sebastian Lourido finds an RNA-binding protein that is key to helping the parasite Toxoplasma gondii commit to its dormant stage.

Climate change and economic development are increasing our risk of being infected by parasites and harmful viruses and bacteria. Whitehead Institute researchers are leveraging their expertise to better assess where pathogens will spread and evaluate their risk to humans.

Whitehead Institute Founding Member Harvey Lodish was co-recipient of the 2021 MITx Prize for Teaching and Learning in MOOCs, and Whitehead Institute Member Sebastian Lourido has been named as one of the Burroughs Wellcome Fund’s 2021 Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease. 

In this episode of AudioHelicase Podcast, Whitehead Fellow Silvi Rouskin discusses her research on solving the structure of the novel coronavirus's RNA genome, with the goal of revealing weak points in the virus’s gene regulation that new drugs could potentially target.

Whitehead Institute Member Sebastian Lourido’s CRISPR screen technique reveals factors in parasites’ susceptibility to antibiotics.

Weiskopf will be studying how existing FDA-approved drugs could be repurposed to reduce the severity and mortality of the disease.

Alexsia Richards is a postdoc in Whitehead Institute Member Rudolf Jaenisch’s lab investigating how dangerous tropical viruses interact with the brain. We sat down with Richards to learn more about her and her experiences in and out of the lab.

Whitehead Institute researchers unravel the unique biology of apicomplexans — the parasites responsible for malaria, toxoplasmosis, and other diseases impacting global health.