News

Gladstone in the News May 18, 2022

It’s Happening Again: COVID-19 Cases Are Back on the Rise. There Are 3 Main Reasons Why.

USA Today—When the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 swept the country this winter, many had hoped it might help move the population closer to herd immunity. However, Director of the Gladstone Institute of Virology Melanie Ott describes her team’s research that shows that previous infection with Omicron does not provide strong protection against infection with other variants.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Ott Lab

Gladstone in the News May 12, 2022

Bay Area Scientists Explain the Chances of COVID Reinfections as Omicron Subvariants Spread

ABC News—COVID-19 case numbers are rising in the San Francisco Bay Area, driven by sublineages of the Omicron variant. Gladstone virologist Warner Greene explains that the new subvariants are more infectious, and can evade the antibodies produced in response to vaccination and previous infection.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Greene Lab

Gladstone in the News May 12, 2022

What the Current Spike in Covid-19 Cases Could Say About the Coronavirus’ Future

STAT News—COVID-19 case numbers are rising once again across the United States. Melanie Ott, director of the Gladstone Institute of Virology, explains that the virus is adapting to a new immune landscape, with variants emerging that are able to cause infection even in individuals who were previously infected.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Ott Lab

Gladstone in the News April 20, 2022

“Let’s Knock on Wood” the Vaccine Will Protect against New COVID-19 Variants, Says Expert

KCBS News—Although Omicron and related new variants can infect vaccinated people, Senior Investigator Warner Greene says vaccines still protect us well against severe disease, and urges people to get at least one booster shot.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Center for HIV Cure Research Greene Lab

Gladstone in the News April 6, 2022

Obesity May Alter Inflammation on a Molecular Level, Throwing Current Treatments into Question

Fierce Biotech—Alexander Marson, director of the Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, and his colleagues at UC San Francisco and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, recently showed that obese mice with atopic dermatitis had an altered immune response that made them refractory to anti-inflammatory treatment. Fierce Biotech discusses the implications of this finding for the development of drugs against inflammation and asthma.

Gladstone Experts Genomic Immunology Marson Lab Disease Models

Gladstone in the News March 30, 2022

Obesity Can Turn a Helpful Immunotherapy into a Harmful One, Mouse Study Shows

STAT News—Alexander Marson, director of the Gladstone-UCSF Institute of Genomic Immunology, describes new research from his group showing that the immune response in a mouse model of atopic dermatitis is altered by obesity. This difference rendered first-line therapies ineffective in mice, indicating that treatments for inflammatory disorders may need to be tailored to work in individual patients, depending on their metabolic state.

Gladstone Experts Genomic Immunology Marson Lab Disease Models Metabolism

Gladstone in the News March 30, 2022

Do You Need a 4th Dose of a COVID-19 Vaccine? There’s No One-Size-Fits-All Answer

CBC—The FDA recently authorized a fourth dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for all individuals over aged 50, and for those 12 and older with immunodeficiencies. Melanie Ott, director of the Gladstone Institute of Virology, explains that whereas a fourth shot may not be urgently necessary for individuals who are young and healthy, she does encourage those eligible to ensure that they get their third shot (first booster).

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Ott Lab

Gladstone in the News March 30, 2022

Virologist Says 2nd COVID Booster Shot for Everyone Could Be Advised in the Fall

ABC News—The FDA recently announced that they would authorize a second COVID-19 vaccine booster shot for people 50 and older, and those 12 and older who are immunocompromised. Senior Investigator Warner Greene explains that the second booster can protect people who don’t have vigorous immune systems from infection, and predicts that it may be more broadly recommended for all adults in the months to come.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Greene Lab

Gladstone in the News March 16, 2022

Highly-Transmissible COVID Subvariant Increasing in CA, but Expert ‘Doubts’ Lockdowns Will Be Needed

ABC News—A sub-variant of Omicron known as BA.2 is causing a spike in COVID-19 cases in Europe, and is predicted to become the globally dominant variant in the coming weeks. However, Senior Investigator Warner Greene says that vaccinated and boosted individuals are still well protected against serious illness, and spread of this new variant is unlikely to lead to new lockdowns.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Greene Lab

Article March 14, 2022

9 Things to Know about COVID-19 Immunity

Immunity is not as straightforward as you may think

Gladstone Experts COVID-19

Gladstone in the News March 9, 2022

Three Ways to Strengthen a Collaborative Culture

The APQC Blog—Gladstone President Deepak Srivastava, MD, President Emeritus Robert Mahley, MD, PhD, Senior Investigators Melanie Ott, MD, PhD, and Katie Pollard, PhD, explain how they and others at Gladstone create a collaborative research culture and plan to balance safety with the chance encounters that fuel creativity.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Cardiovascular Disease Data Science and Biotechnology Infectious Disease Huang Lab Ott Lab Pollard Lab Srivastava Lab Weinberger Lab

Gladstone in the News March 9, 2022

COVID-19 Linked to Neurological Symptoms, Studies Show

abc7 news—Senior Investigator Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, commenting on two recent studies that show long-term neurological symptoms in some COVID-19 patients, suggests that these symptoms could result from blood leaks into the brain, which can happen even during a minor infection.

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Neurological Disease Akassoglou Lab

Gladstone in the News March 9, 2022

Disease in a Dish: What Mini-Hearts and Other Organs Reveal about Long COVID

San Jose Mercury News—Senior Investigators Melanie Ott, MD, PhD, and Bruce Conklin, MD, recount how they used miniature balls of beating heart cells called organoids to study the effects of COVID-19 on the heart. The heart cells were derived from a person's skin cells, thanks to technology pioneered by Senior Investigator and Nobel Laureate Shinya Yamanaka, MD, PhD.

Gladstone Experts Stem Cell Core COVID-19 Cardiovascular Disease Data Science and Biotechnology Infectious Disease Conklin Lab Ott Lab Yamanaka Lab Organoids

Article February 11, 2022

When Will This Pandemic End?

And other questions you have about Omicron and the pandemic

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Greene Lab Ott Lab Roan Lab

Video February 4, 2022

Omicron Update

In this COVID-19: Ask the Experts webinar, Gladstone virologists explain the latest science about the Omicron variant and answer questions about masking, testing, and more

Gladstone Experts COVID-19 Infectious Disease Greene Lab Ott Lab