Felgner to lead development of infectious disease tests

Infectious diseases researcher Philip Felgner will lead a $3.75 million, federally funded effort to develop methods for new diagnostic tests for dangerous infectious diseases such as hemorrhagic fever and salmonella poisoning. Felgner and his UC Irvine colleagues will work with scientists from UC Davis, University of Texas and the University of Hawaii to identify all of the reactive proteins from infectious microorganisms that cause these diseases. Discoveries from this effort will enable the rapid development of tests that can be used for outbreaks worldwide. Since joining UCI five years ago, Felgner has helped attract more than $18 million in grant funding to the growing area of infectious diseases research in the School of Medicine.