Division of Viral Diseases (DVD)

Our Mission

The Division of Viral Diseases’ (DVD) mission is to prevent disease, disability, and death from viral diseases through immunization and other prevention measures.

Our Objectives

DVD’s objectives are to

• Optimize the safe, efficient, and effective use of vaccines and other known ways to prevent viral diseases
• Identify, characterize, and evaluate new ways to prevent viral diseases
• Effectively and efficiently respond to outbreaks of respiratory and enteric viral disease
• Improve local and state and global capacity to prevent disease and respond to outbreaks caused by respiratory and enteric viruses
• Attract, train, and retain the best leaders, managers, and scientists

Our Organization

As of January 2021, DVD leadership and branch structure are as follows:

Office of the Director

• Stephanie Bialek – Director
• Thomas Clark – Deputy Director
• April Allman – Associate Director of Program Management
• Mark Sotir – Associate Director for Epidemiologic Science
• William Weldon – Associate Director for Laboratory Science
• Karen Mason – Associate Director for Policy
• Janine Cory – Associate Director for Communication Science
• Arunmozhi Balajee – Associate Director for Global Health Science
• Aaron Curns – Team Lead for Analysis and Data Management Activity

Viral Gastroenteritis Branch

• Umesh Parashar – Branch Chief
• Sean M. Flynn – Deputy Branch Chief

Team Leads

• Michael Bowen – Rotavirus Surveillance and Molecular Epidemiology
• Baoming Jiang – Rotavirus Vaccines and Immunology
• Jacqueline Tate – Viral Gastroenteritis Epidemiology
• Jan Vinjé – Norovirus Laboratory

Polio and Picornavirus Laboratory Branch

• Steve Oberste – Branch Chief
• Youness Elhamidi – Deputy Branch Chief

Team Leads

• Jennifer Anstadt – Vaccine Development
• Cara Burns – Molecular Epidemiology and Surveillance
• Bernardo Mainou – Population Immunity
• Shannon Rogers (acting) – Picornavirus
• Janell Routh – Acute Flaccid Myelitis and Domestic Polio
• Everardo Vega – Molecular Diagnostic Development

Respiratory Viruses Branch

• Aron Hall – Branch Chief
• Adam Macneil – Deputy Branch Chief for Epidemiology
• Lee Ann Ramsey – Deputy Branch Chief for Program
• Vacant – Deputy Branch Chief for Laboratory

Team Leads

• Mathew Esona (acting) – Diagnostics Laboratory
• Hannah Kirking – Outbreak Response and Prevention
• Meredith McMorrow – Enhanced Surveillance Platforms
• Sharon Saydah (acting) – Natural History
• Benjamin Silk – Surveillance and Analytics
• Natalie Thornburg – Immunology Laboratory
• Suxiang Tong – Genomics and Discovery Laboratory

Viral Vaccine Preventable Diseases Branch

• Paul Rota – Branch Chief
• Tara Brown – Deputy Branch Chief

Team Leads

• Bettina Bankamp – Measles Laboratory
• Carole Hickman – Mumps Laboratory
• Joseph P. Icenogle – Rubella Virus Laboratory
• Scott Schmid – Herpesvirus Laboratory
• Tatiana Lanzieri (acting) – Measles, Rubella, CMV Epidemiology
• Tara Anderson (acting) – Mumps, Varicella, Zoster Epidemiology
• Lauri Markowitz – Human Papillomavirus Epidemiology