Matthew J. Memoli is an American physician-scientist and infectious disease researcher serving as the acting director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 2025. He was the director of the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases (LID) Clinical Studies Unit in the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

Education

Matthew J. Memoli graduated from the College of William & Mary with an undergraduate degree.[1] He earned a M.S. in microbiology from Thomas Jefferson University in 1998.[1]

Memoli obtained a M.D. in 2002 from St. George's University School of Medicine.[1] Following medical school, he completed a residency in internal medicine at the MedStar Washington Hospital Center via Georgetown University School of Medicine.[1] He completed a fellowship in infectious diseases at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).[1]

Career

Memoli joined NIAID, where he established a clinical and translational research program focused on influenza and respiratory viruses.[1] He serves as the director of the Laboratory of Infectious Diseases (LID) Clinical Studies Unit, located at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland.[1] His research includes studies on human influenza pathogenesis, respiratory viruses, influenza transmission, and broadly protective vaccines.[1]

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.[1] The unit developed the first FDA-approved H1N1 influenza challenge virus and has been instrumental in developing validated models for influenza research and the evaluation of new vaccines and therapeutics.[1] Memoli has conducted human challenge studies to better understand influenza pathogenesis, correlates of protection, and predictors of severe disease.[1] Recent efforts include studies on universal influenza vaccines and emerging viral infections like Dengue, Zika, and Leishmaniasis.[1]

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 and favored targeted vaccination for high-risk groups.[2][3] Memoli participated in an ethics debate on vaccine mandates hosted by the NIH in December 2021.[2]

On January 22, 2025, Memoli was appointed acting director of the NIH by the Trump administration.[3][4] During his direction in early 2025, the NIH suffered from confusion regarding details of purchasing and conducting research.[5]On February 7, 2025 his office issued a notice on capping indirect costs at 15%.[6]For some universities this corresponds to more than a 75% decrease from the current rate.[7]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."[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Matthew J. Memoli, M.D., M.S." National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. 2022-08-10. Retrieved 2025-01-26.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ a b Barnes, Adam (November 8, 2021). "Senior NIH expert pushes back on growing vaccine mandates". The Hill. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  3. ^ a b Boodman, Eric; Oza, Anil (2025-01-24). "Veteran researcher who was critical of U.S. response to Covid named acting NIH head". STAT. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  4. ^ "The NIH Director". National Institutes of Health (NIH). Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  5. ^ "NIH memo addresses 'confusion' about restrictions imposed by Trump, easing some concerns". www.science.org.
  6. ^ "Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates". www.nih.gov.
  7. ^ "Researchers decry 'disastrously bad idea' as NIH slashes payments for research infrastructure". www.cnn.com.
  8. ^ "COMPLAINT FOR DECLARATORY AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF" (PDF). www.courtlistener.com.
Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Institutes of Health.


Government offices
Preceded by Director of the National Institutes of Health
Acting

2025–present
Incumbent
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