Matthew Memoli
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Matthew J. Memoli is an American
physician-scientist A physician-scientist (in North American English) or clinician-scientist (in British English and Australian English) is a physician who divides their professional time between direct clinical practice with patients and scientific research. Physicia ...
and infectious disease researcher who had served as the acting
director of the National Institutes of Health In the United States, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency responsible for medical research. The director of the National Institutes of Health plays an active role in shaping the agency's activities and outlook. The direc ...
(NIH). He was the director of the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases (LID) Clinical Studies Unit in the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, ) is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. NIAID's mis ...
(NIAID).


Education

Matthew J. Memoli graduated from the
College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...
with an undergraduate degree. He earned a M.S. in
microbiology Microbiology () is the branches of science, scientific study of microorganisms, those being of unicellular organism, unicellular (single-celled), multicellular organism, multicellular (consisting of complex cells), or non-cellular life, acellula ...
from
Thomas Jefferson University Thomas Jefferson University is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. ...
in 1998. Memoli obtained a M.D. in 2002 from St. George's University School of Medicine. Following medical school, he completed a residency in
internal medicine Internal medicine, also known as general medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases in adults. Its namesake stems from "treatment of diseases of ...
at the MedStar Washington Hospital Center via Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed a fellowship in
infectious diseases infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...
at the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, ) is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. NIAID's mis ...
(NIAID) at the
National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...
(NIH).


Career

Memoli joined NIAID, where he established a clinical and
translational research Translational research (also called translation research, translational science, or, when the context is clear, simply translation) is research aimed at translating (converting) results in basic research into results that directly benefit humans ...
program focused on
influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...
and respiratory viruses. He serves as the director of the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases (LID)
Clinical Studies Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel vaccines, drugs, dietar ...
Unit, located at the National Institutes of Health campus in
Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...
. His research includes studies on human influenza pathogenesis, respiratory viruses, influenza transmission, and broadly protective vaccines. In 2011, under Memoli's leadership, the LID Clinical Studies Unit revived influenza healthy volunteer challenge studies in the United States after a decade-long hiatus. The unit developed the first FDA-approved
H1N1 Influenza A virus subtype H1N1 (A/H1N1) is a subtype of influenza A virus (IAV). Some human-adapted strains of H1N1 are endemic in humans and are one cause of seasonal influenza (flu). Other strains of H1N1 are endemic in pigs ( swine influen ...
influenza challenge virus and has been instrumental in developing validated models for influenza research and the evaluation of new vaccines and therapeutics. Memoli has conducted human challenge studies to better understand influenza pathogenesis, correlates of protection, and predictors of severe disease. Recent efforts include studies on universal influenza vaccines and emerging viral infections like
Dengue Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease caused by dengue virus, prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas. Asymptomatic infections are uncommon, mild cases happen frequently; if symptoms appear, they typically begin 3 to 14 days after ...
,
Zika Zika fever, also known as Zika virus disease or simply Zika, is an infectious disease caused by the Zika virus. Most cases have no symptoms, but when present they are usually mild and can resemble dengue fever. Symptoms may include fever, conju ...
, and
Leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis is a wide array of clinical manifestations caused by protozoal parasites of the Trypanosomatida genus ''Leishmania''. It is generally spread through the bite of Phlebotominae, phlebotomine Sandfly, sandflies, ''Phlebotomus'' an ...
. In 2021, Memoli gained attention for his opposition to COVID-19 vaccine mandates within the NIH. He argued that population-level vaccination strategies could impede the development of
natural immunity In biology, immunity is the state of being insusceptible or resistant to a noxious agent or process, especially a pathogen or infectious disease. Immunity may occur naturally or be produced by prior exposure or immunization. Innate and adaptive ...
and favored targeted vaccination for high-risk groups. Memoli participated in an ethics debate on vaccine mandates hosted by the NIH in December 2021. On January 22, 2025, Memoli was appointed acting director of the NIH by the Trump administration. During his direction in early 2025, the NIH suffered from confusion regarding details of purchasing and conducting research. On February 7, 2025 his office issued a notice on capping the indirect cost rate at 15%. For some universities this corresponds to more than a 75% decrease from the current rate. Several states have subsequently sued the NIH, arguing that "Without relief from NIH’s action, these institutions’ cutting-edge work to cure and treat human disease will grind to a halt."


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Memoli, Matthew Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people) College of William & Mary alumni Thomas Jefferson University alumni St. George's University alumni Physician-scientists 21st-century American physicians 21st-century American biologists American microbiologists Directors of the National Institutes of Health American medical researchers American infectious disease physicians COVID-19 researchers Second Trump administration personnel