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2020 News



Thursday, July 02, 2020

UMSOM Researchers Help Weigh Role of Human Challenge Studies for COVID-19 Vaccine Development

Members of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) Working Group, which includes Kathleen Neuzil, MD, MPH, DTPH, the Myron M. Levine, MD, DTPH Professor in Vaccinology and Director of the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), assessed the practical considerations and prerequisites for using controlled human infection models (CHIMs) to support development of a SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine.


Tuesday, May 05, 2020

UM School of Medicine is First in U.S. to Test Unique RNA Vaccine Candidate for COVID-19

In a significant development in the global effort to discover a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19, researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) became the first in the U.S. to begin testing experimental COVID-19 vaccine candidates developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The research, funded by Pfizer Inc., will study the safety, efficacy, and dosing of an experimental mRNA -based vaccine.


Monday, April 27, 2020

UM School of Medicine Researchers Test Experimental Therapy to Prevent COVID-19

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) have begun testing the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine as a therapy to prevent infection and symptoms in individuals who have been exposed to COVID-19-positive individuals. The trial is significant because it focuses on preventing COVID-19 and does not involve individuals who are ill with infection but rather healthy individuals who have been exposed.


Thursday, April 23, 2020

UM School of Medicine Researchers Test Remdesivir as Potential Therapy for COVID-19 Patients

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) are testing the effectiveness of the investigational antiviral drug remdesivir in hospitalized adult patients with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). The randomized controlled clinical trial is evaluating the safety and effectiveness of the drug, and it is part of a national study funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).


Tuesday, February 25, 2020

World Health Organization Names UMSOM Faculty Member as COVID-19 Advisor

Samba Sow, MD, MSc, FASTMH, Director General of the Center for Vaccine Development in Mali (CVD-Mali), and Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), was appointed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to serve as a special envoy on issues related to coronavirus COVID-19.


Thursday, January 30, 2020

UMSOM Pediatric Infectious Disease Experts Sound Alarm Over Risk of Outbreaks in U.S. Border Detention Centers

Over the past year, at least seven children have died from diseases including influenza while being detained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency. Infectious disease experts at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) called for protections like influenza vaccinations to prevent serious outbreaks.


Thursday, January 09, 2020

UM School of Medicine Research Shows Less Severe Cases of Diarrheal Illness can Still Lead to Child Deaths, Even Weeks Following Onset of the Illness

Diarrheal diseases are a leading cause of death for young children, accounting for nine percent of all deaths worldwide in children under five years of age, with most occurring in children under two years of age. Now, researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) found that even milder cases of diarrheal diseases can lead to death in young children.