White House Science Chief Lander Visits NIH
Photo: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang
Photo: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang
Photo: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang
Photo: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang
Photo: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang
Dr. Eric Lander, President Biden’s nominee to lead the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), visited NIH on Feb. 10. Accompanied by OSTP Chief of Staff Kei Koizumi, Lander met at the Vaccine Research Center with NIAID director Dr. Anthony Fauci, who also serves as Biden’s chief medical advisor.
Fauci gave an overview of NIAID with a focus on vaccine development; VRC director Dr. John Mascola provided a VRC overview with an emphasis on Covid-19 vaccine research.
“Both emphasized the importance of prior basic research in speeding the development of a vaccine,” noted Dr. Cliff Lane, NIAID deputy director for clinical research and special projects, who also attended the meeting at the VRC, along with Dr. Emily Erbelding, director of the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID), and Dr. Alan Embry, chief of DMID’s Respiratory Diseases Branch.
Joining the gathering by video were VRC deputy director Dr. Barney Graham; Dr. Daniel Rotrosen, director of the Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation; NIAID principal deputy director Dr. Hugh Auchincloss; and Dr. Carl Dieffenbach, director of the Division of AIDS.
Lane and other division directors briefly discussed what their divisions are doing as part of the NIH Covid-19 response.