Podcast
This Week in Virology
Hosted by Vincent Racaniello · EN
This Week in Virology is a netcast about viruses - the kind that make you sick.
69episodes
Episodes
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TWiV 1337: The whitefly and the Red Queen
Jul 501:52:32Tap to summarizeTWiV explains research that reveals an an alternative evolutionary path of antiviral signalling in a sea anemone, and how a bacterial symbiont and a plant virus enhance insect fitness by inducing physical defenses against fungal parasites. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, and Rich Condit Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support science education at MicrobeTV Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email) Springer-Nature retracted two papers by Max Planck, probably with a bot (Science) Alternative evolutionary path of antiviral signalling in sea anemone (Nat Ecol Evol) Bacterial symbiont and plant virus protect whitefly against fungal parasites (PNAS) Letters read on TWiV 1337 Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks! Picks of the Week Rich – The Mercy of Gods by James S. A. Corey; Livesuit by James S. A. Corey Alan – Climate.us, run by former NOAA scientists after Trump gutted their agency’s climate site Vincent – A Chemically Defined Synthetic Cell Capable of Growth and Replication Listener Pick Lana – The Episodic Table of Elements Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
Transcribe →TWiV 1336: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
Jul 400:23:07Tap to summarizeIn his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello lament about the new ACIP charter, how administration of the HPV vaccine has eliminated cervical cancer deaths in young women, the global economic burden of infectious disease, restoring trust in vaccinology, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and need for preparedness, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, publication of the blocked COVID-19 vaccine findings, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode New ACIP charter broadens criteria for members, calls for review of alternatives to vaccines (STAT News) ACIP Charter (CDC: Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) HPV vaccination eliminated cervical cancer deaths in young UK women in recent years, study suggests (CIDRAP) Cervical cancer mortality trends following HPV vaccination in England, 2001–24: an analysis of population-based mortality data (LANCET) Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom) Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola) Size of the 2026 Ebola outbreak and risk of cross-border spillover from Bundibugyo virus in Ituri Province, DR Congo, and its implications for preparedness: a recalibrated stochastic modelling study (LANCET Infectious Diseases) US CDC raises Ebola outbreak response to highest level (Reuters) Construction of US-backed Ebola quarantine unit in Kenya is stopped (CIDRAP) ASPR Supports Global Ebola Response While Strengthening U.S. Preparedness (Administration for Strategic Preparedness & Response) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan) Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola) Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health) Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) Utah Measles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health) Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins) Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg) Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada) Measles (WHO) Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health) Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC) Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM) Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America) Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine) Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan) US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA) WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP) FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP) Weekly surveillance report: cliff notes (CDC FluView) US military requires flu vaccine <a href= "https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/us-military-requires-flu-vacci...
Transcribe →TWiV Special: Albert Sabin with Karen Torghele
Jun 2901:10:00Tap to summarizeVincent speaks with Karen Torghele about her recently published biography of polio vaccine pioneer Albert Sabin, the first ever written. Host: Vincent Racaniello Guest: Karen Torghele Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Links for this episode Karen Torghele’s website Purchase Albert Sabin by Karen Torghele (Bookshop or Amazon) My letters from Albert Sabin (virology blog) Become a patron of TWiV! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
Transcribe →TWiV 1335: TldR, bacterial hot rods and nullifying norovirus
Jun 2801:55:49Tap to summarizeTWiV explains research showing how temperate phages enhance bacterial host fitness via RNA-guided flagellar remodelling, and that IgA antibody is necessary and sufficient to prevent norovirus infection in mice. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, Brianne Barker, and Jolene Ramsey Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support science education at MicrobeTV Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email) Fred Murphy passes away (X) US has lost its hold on measles elimination (CIDRAP) What’s in the genetic code of America’s measles outbreaks (ProPublica) Did Pete Hegseth single-handedly raise the R₀ of flu? (Inside Medicine) Fred Murphy’s Virus Images and Foundations of Virology (UTMB) Temperate phages and RNA-guided flagellar remodelling (Nat Micro) Eukaryotic RNA guided system (Nature) IgA prevents norovirus infection in mice (Sci Transl Med) Craig Wilen’s letter to TWiV (TWiV 492) Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks! Picks of the Week Brianne – APod June 26: Milky Way Urban Style Rich – Your birth order affects your future, but not for the reason you think; Dr. McCoy Jolene – Bakteriopolis paper and site Vincent – The Claude Shutdown Is a Total Sh*tshow Listener Pick Martin – Ancient text charred by Vesuvius read for first time in 2,000 years Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
Transcribe →TWiV 1334: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
Jun 27Tap to summarizeIn his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello discuss the global economic burden of infectious disease, restoring trust in vaccinology, the Legionnaires outbreak in Harlem, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and an import case into France, end of the hantavirus outbreak before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, outbreak of measles in Cook County Illionis in 2025, loss of measles elimination in the US, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, publication of the blocked COVID-19 vaccine findings, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Health and economic burdens of emerging infectious diseases in the USA, US territories and globally (BMJ Journal of Global Health) Meeting People Where They Are: Scientist-Creators Delivering Trusted Health Information on Social Media and Beyond (The Evidence Collective) Vaccine Integrity Project, The Evidence Collective announce projects to improve vaccine policy, restore trust (CIDRAP) Outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease Associated with Cooling Tower Systems in Central Harlem (NEJM Evidence) Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom) Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola) France confirms first Ebola case (BBC) Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up) Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (microbeTV) Health agencies signal end of quarantine period for cruise-linked Andes virus outbreak (DG:Alerts) HHS Successfully Concludes Hantavirus Response Effort; Monitoring Ends with No Positive U.S. Case (US: HHS) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan) Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola) Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health) Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) US measles cases continue to climb, especially in Virginia (CIDRAP) Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health) Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins) Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg) Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada) Measles (WHO) Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health) Measles(CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC) Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC) Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles (CDC: Measles Rubeola) Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM) Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America) Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine) Measles Outbreak in Cook County, Illinois, September–October 2025 (NEJM Evidence) CDC ‘transitioning away’ from diagnostic testing for measles, mumps (POLITICO PRO) CIDRAP Op-Ed: Call it what it is—the US has lost its hold on measles elimination (CIDRAP) Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan) USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) <a href= "https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/vaccines-and-related-biological-prod...
Transcribe →TWiV 1334: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
Jun 2700:31:01Tap to summarizeIn his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello discuss the global economic burden of infectious disease, restoring trust in vaccinology, the Legionnaires outbreak in Harlem, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and an import case into France, end of the hantavirus outbreak before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, outbreak of measles in Cook County Illionis in 2025, loss of measles elimination in the US, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, publication of the blocked COVID-19 vaccine findings, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Health and economic burdens of emerging infectious diseases in the USA, US territories and globally (BMJ Journal of Global Health) Meeting People Where They Are: Scientist-Creators Delivering Trusted Health Information on Social Media and Beyond (The Evidence Collective) Vaccine Integrity Project, The Evidence Collective announce projects to improve vaccine policy, restore trust (CIDRAP) Outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease Associated with Cooling Tower Systems in Central Harlem (NEJM Evidence) Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom) Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola) France confirms first Ebola case (BBC) Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up) Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (microbeTV) Health agencies signal end of quarantine period for cruise-linked Andes virus outbreak (DG:Alerts) HHS Successfully Concludes Hantavirus Response Effort; Monitoring Ends with No Positive U.S. Case (US: HHS) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan) Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola) Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health) Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) US measles cases continue to climb, especially in Virginia (CIDRAP) Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health) Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins) Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg) Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada) Measles (WHO) Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health) Measles(CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC) Contraindications and precautions to measles vaccination (CDC) Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles (CDC: Measles Rubeola) Adverse events associated with childhood vaccines: evidence bearing on causality (NLM) Measles Vaccination: Know the Facts (ISDA: Infectious Diseases Society of America) Deaths following vaccination: what does the evidence show (Vaccine) Measles Outbreak in Cook County, Illinois, September–October 2025 (NEJM Evidence) CDC ‘transitioning away’ from diagnostic testing for measles, mumps (POLITICO PRO) CIDRAP Op-Ed: Call it what it is—the US has lost its hold on measles elimination (CIDRAP) Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan) USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) <a href= "https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/vaccines-and-related-biological-prod...
Transcribe →TWiV 1333: STING like a nanoparticle, float like HIV
Jun 2101:54:50Tap to summarizeTWiV explains research showing how HIV-1 signalling remodels nuclear pores to licence infection, and development of STING agonist nanoparticles to enable coordinated mucosal-systemic immunity for durable pan-β-coronavirus protection. Hosts: VVincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support science education at MicrobeTV Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email) Bundibugyo ebolavirus sitrep (WHO) Ebolavirus and Andes virus with John Dye (TWiV Special) Major research nonhuman primate supplier going out of business (Science) HIV-1 signalling remodels nuclear pores to licence infection (Nature) STING agonist nanoparticles enable mucosal-systemic immunity (Nature Nanoparticles) Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks! Picks of the Week Brianne – Otherworldly music albums feature space weather data Rich – Evidence Mapping: Consolidating and summarising available evidence to support the demonstration of effectiveness of developmental vaccines, Australian Living Evidence Collaboration (ALEC) Alan – Holyoke dam fish elevator Vincent – 68 Quadrillion Underground Miles of Fungi Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
Transcribe →TWiV Special: Ebola virus and Andes virus with John Dye
Jun 2000:57:08Tap to summarizeVincent travels to ASM Microbe in Washington DC to speak with John Dye of the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases about the recent outbreaks of Bundibugyo ebolavirus in Africa and Andes virus on a cruise ship. Host: Vincent Racaniello Guest: John Dye Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
Transcribe →TWiV 1332: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
Jun 2000:54:29Tap to summarizeIn his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello express concern about vaccine policy and ACIP, scaling back of the CDC’s role in global public health, shingles vaccine and dementia, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and where the hantavirus outbreak began, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics on RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, Virgina outbreak of measles, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, how more people were negatively impacted by influenza than COVID, discontinuing contact precautions for COVID, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, and contacting your federal government representative to stop the assault on science and biomedical research. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Today we filed a motion asking the First Circuit to expedite our appeal of the district court’s order in the AAP lawsuit that left ACIP—the nation’s vaccine advisory committee—without a quorum (X) CDC advisers drop decades-old universal hepatitis B birth dose recommendation, suggest blood testing after 1 dose (CIDRAP) HHS asks for expedited appeal of court ruling on US vaccine policy (CIDRAP) New Plan Scales Back C.D.C.’s Work on Diseases Abroad (NY Times) Zoster Vaccination and Dementia: Interpreting the Signal and Testing the Mechanisms (CID) Safety and Immunogenicity of 1 or 2 Additional Doses of the Adjuvanted Recombinant Zoster Vaccine Administered 5–6 Years After Primary Vaccination in Adults ≥50 Years (OFID) Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom) Head-to-head comparison suggests flu was much more likely to lead to hospitalization than COVID last winter (CIDRAP) FDA Issues Emergency Use Authorization for Generic Over-the-Counter Drug to Treat New World Screwworm in Dogs and Cats (FDA) Fact Sheet: Emergency Use Authorization of Nitenpyram Tablets (nitenpyram) for New World Screwworm (NWS) (FDA) Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola) Big Ebola outbreak puts spotlight on little known virus (Science) Ebola outbreak spreads to crowded displacement camp in Congo (Reuters) Ebola outbreak in DR Congo expands into large displacement camp (CIDRAP) Congo Ebola outbreak may be worst ever, Africa CDC says (Reuters) Advocacy groups are urging the release of the monoclonal antibody MBP134 and any other requested investigational therapeutics (Citizen.org) Hantavirus dashboard (Hantavirus.up Hantavirus on board with Prof. Vincent Racaniello (microbeTV) How did the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak start? (Science) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan) Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola) Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard( South Carolina Department of Public Health) Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) US measles cases continue to climb, especially in Virginia(CIDRAP) Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health) Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins) Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg) Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada) Measles (WHO) Get the FACTS about measles (NY State Department of Health) Measles (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Measles vaccine (CDC Measles (Rubeola)) Presumptive evidence of measles immunity (CDC) <a...
Transcribe →TWiV 1331: A drug for cervical cancer
Jun 1401:58:16Tap to summarizeTWiV explains research showing that dairy cows are infected with low doses of influenza A(H5N1) and do not transmit efficiently to other animals, and covalent inhibitors of human papillomavirus type 16 E6 protein that restore p53 function and suppress growth of HPV-driven tumors in vivo. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, Brianne Barker, and Angela Mingarelli Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support science education at MicrobeTV Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email) Letter on Baric funding ban (Science, scroll to bottom) New political jobs at science agencies (Science) Ebola sitrep (WHO) Influenza H5N1 infection of dairy cows (Nat Comm) Drug for cervical cancer (PNAS) Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks! Picks of the Week Angela – SpaceX Brianne – Honeybees and shrimp are now getting vaccinated Rich – “Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut’s Journeys” by Michael Collins Vincent – NTSB Reveals What Really Happened to United 169 Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv Content in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice.
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