NIH names Jeanne Marrazzo to head National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Aug. 2 (UPI) -- The National Institutes of Health on Tuesday named Dr. Jeanne M. Marrazzo, as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, replacing Dr. Anthony Fauci, who resigned in December.

Marrazzo who currently serves as the director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham is expected to begin in her new position in the fall.

"Dr. Marrazzo brings a wealth of leadership experience from leading international clinical trials and translational research, managing a complex organizational budget that includes research funding and mentoring trainees in all stages of professional development," Lawrence A. Tabak, NIH's acting director, said in a statement.

Dr. Hugh Auchincloss had been serving as acting director of the institute since Fauci's departure. Marrazzo is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and is board certified in infectious disease.

She was the recipient of the American Sexually Transmitted Diseases Association's Distinguished Career Award, the highest recognition of contributions to research and mentoring in the field.

Marrazzo's research in discovery and implementation science has focused on the human microbiome, specifically as it relates to female reproductive tract infections and hormonal contraception; prevention of HIV infection using biomedical interventions.

That includes PrEP and microbicides; the pathogenesis and management of bacterial vaginosis, sexually transmitted diseases in HIV-infected persons and the management of antibiotic resistance in gonorrhea.

Fauci had served in the role for 38 years, shaping the U.S. medical community's response to first the AIDS crisis in the 1980s and most recently the COVID-19 pandemic.

He was thrust into the spotlight once again during the COVID-19 pandemic as he became the face of the response in the United States, leading the call to wear masks to prevent the spread of the disease along with supporting research that led to treatments and vaccines.

Last month, Fauci began a role as a Distinguished University Professor at Georgetown University's medical school.