The Division of Infectious Disease has a broad research footprint that includes basic, translational, clinical, and quality improvement research. The Division has benefited from significant funding from the NIH, Gates Foundation, as well as other federal and industry funders.
Dr. Christopher Huston has pioneered techniques for the high-throughput assessment of new drugs for a parasite that is a worldwide cause of diarrhea, Cryptosporidium. He has also explored the molecular and immunologic mechanisms behind the pathogenesis of amebiasis. Dr. Peter Hyson has built on Dr. Huston’s drug development platforms and is exploring treatments for babesiosis.
Multiple division faculty are involved in the Vaccine Testing Center (VTC). For 24 years, this large research team of clinical and translational investigators has performed over 80 vaccine trials, human experimental challenge studies, and observational trials. VTC research is based in Vermont but enjoys a strong collaboration in Bangladesh. Dr. Beth Kirkpatrick was the founding director of the VTC, which is now led by Dr. Kristen Pierce and Mary-Claire Walsh, PA. VTC research focuses heavily on dengue vaccine development and vaccines for enteric infections, as well as other important vaccines (e.g., Lyme, COVID-19). For over 15 years, the VTC team has done highly impactful work on the NIH tetravalent dengue vaccine, in collaboration with the NIH and Johns Hopkins. The group has also made substantial contributions to understanding vaccine immunity, genetic associations with infection risks, correlates of protection, and the underperformance of oral vaccines in low-income countries.
Our faculty physicians participate in key sections of the Vermont Integrated Curriculum for medical students, including medicine clerkships and acting internships. We teach our Medicine residents during their elective time with our consult service and during their academic half days. The ID fellowship is a two-year training program with a clinical year covering the clinical management of complex infections and a research year. For the past twenty-five years, we have graduated excellent Infectious Disease fellows with a 100% board certification pass rate. We have busy and complex inpatient consultation services, with three teams at the University of Vermont Medical Center seeing approximately 2,000 new hospitalized patients in consultation per year, along with services at Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital and Central Vermont Medical Center.
Our faculty deliver state-of-the-art rural HIV care in four federally funded clinics in Vermont. Our clinic serves a diverse population, including new Americans and refugees. We work collaboratively with the Vermont Department of Health on a wide range of public health issues, including tuberculosis, pandemic preparedness, and antibiotic resistance. At the Medical Center and the Larner College of Medicine, our faculty provide leadership in several critical areas, including infection prevention, antimicrobial stewardship, medical education, pandemic preparedness, microbiology, quality, HIV, and medical ethics.
W. Kemper Alston, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Medicine
Division Chief, Infectious Disease Unit