In a daring yet successful experiment back in 1995, Matthias Gromeier, MD, discovered that genetic recombination of poliovirus with a distant relative, human rhinovirus type 2, eliminates the disease-causing capacity of poliovirus. Yet, the modified virus retains the ability to infect and damage cancerous cells, owing to their abnormal “wiring,” and—more importantly—provides powerful immune stimulation by inducing host antiviral defenses.

Duke’s Organ Transplant Program: Out With the Old, In With the New

In 2021, a baby boy named Easton Sinnamon was the first person in the world to receive a combination heart transplant and allogeneic processed thymus tissue implantation. Six months later, a video showed Easton smiling and playing in a high chair, and tests indicated that the processed thymus tissue was working: building the T cells needed for a well-functioning immune system.

For many years, the late Neil L. Spector, MD, who was a leading cancer researcher at Duke Cancer Institute, struggled with Lyme disease. Initially, he was misdiagnosed and when finally treated with antibiotics, some of his symptoms improved but his heart was irreparably damaged due to Lyme carditis, a condition that occurs when Lyme disease bacteria enter the tissues of the heart.

Michael Boyce, PhD, associate professor of biochemistry, never expected to be studying the lungs. He is an expert in glycobiology—the intricate mechanisms behind how sugars attach to proteins, and the role these sugars play in sending signals that influence cell biology, organ function, and more.

Gift by Marion Stein, MD, to support research and faculty at the Duke Human Vaccine Institute.

What if we could disable the defense mechanisms that enable cancer cells to evade treatment, or even control their genes to prevent them from developing into tumors in the first place? Can we enhance our brain’s ability to forestall damage from Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative conditions? Is it possible to develop a vaccine for everything?

Carol Deane advances her long history of support for Duke by establishing a Presidential Distinguished Chair

A new gift from the R.J. Samulski Innovation Foundation has endowed a professorship in the Department of Radiation Oncology.

Professor of Medicine, Professor of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center