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This Week in Virology

This Week in Virology

By: Vincent Racaniello
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 TWiV is a podcast about viruses - the kind that make you sick.Vincent Racaniello 2022 Biological Sciences Nature & Ecology Science
Episodes
  • TWiV 1231: What is a virus?

    TWiV 1231: What is a virus?
    Jun 29 2025

    TWiV discusses Sen. Cassidy calling for ACIP meeting delay, RFK Jr. abandons GAVI, millions of children at risk as global vaccination rates fall, RFK Jr. grilled by Congress, autism rates have increased 60-fold due to changed definitions, deep mutational scanning of rabies virus glyoprotein, and and proton gradient and incomplete TCA cycle in a giant virus.

    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
    • Sen. Cassidy calls for ACIP delay (NYTimes)
    • RFK Jr. stops GAVI funding (NYTimes)
    • Global vaccination rates drop, millions of children at risk (Guardian)
    • Autism rates have increased 60-fold, here’s why (NYTimes)
    • Deep mutational scanning of rabies virus glycoprotein (Cell Host Micr)
    • Giant virus with proton gradient and partial TCA cycle (ISME J)
    • Why cells are powered by proton gradients (Scitable)
    • Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
    Weekly Picks

    Angela – 27 new, exciting, and blobby species discovered in the Peruvian rainforest!
    Brianne – Encounters in the Milky Way
    Rich – Where to go for accurate, up-to-date vaccine information
    Vincent – The members of RFK Jr.’s new vaccine committee have published little on vaccines

    Listener Picks

    Charles – Vaccine Advice, Vandalized
    Ken – Golden Goose Awards

    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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    1 hr and 55 mins
  • TWiV 1230: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin

    TWiV 1230: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
    Jun 28 2025
    In his weekly clinical update, Dr. Griffin with Vincent Racaniello are alarmed at how RFK is breaking his promise of not altering vaccine policies, and nonexistent data and studies are used by members of the ACIP to make changes to immunization practices in the absence of a CDC director, justification for not honoring the US commitment to GAVI and global public policies including support of routine childhood immunizations, placing millions of children at risk for the return of vaccine preventable diseases including polio outbreaks in Pappa New Guinea and increased circulation of wildtype type 1 poliovirus, before Dr. Griffin reviews recent statistics on RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, approval of Merck’s anti-RSV mRNA monoclonal antibody, whether or not the NB.1.8.1 should be included in the fall 2025 vaccines, immunization recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines, where to find PEMGARDA, changes in COVID mRNA vaccine labeling and reframing of the science around the vaccine, provides information for Columbia University Irving Medical Center’s long COVID treatment center, where to go for answers to your long COVID questions, 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 Jake Scott (Stanford University)Vaccine Randomized control trials (Bradspellberg.com)Vaccine RCT spreadsheet aims to show the data, dispel myths about vaccines (CIDRAP)Vaccines-rcts (Bradspellberg.com)CDC’s upcoming vaccine advisory meeting set up to sow distrust in vaccines (CIDRAP)Next ACIP meeting (CDC: ACIP) June meeting: MEETING OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON IMMUNIZATION PRACTICES (ACIP) (CDC: ACIP agenda) Robert F Berman, PhD (UC Davis Health: Department of Neurological Surgery)Transparency = nonexistent data: CDC advisers appears to cite nonexistent study to support claims about risk of vaccine preservative (CNN)A C.D.C. Committee Just Voted Against Flu Shots With This Preservative. Is It Safe? (NY Times)CDC vaccine advisory committee to review long-approved immunizations (STAT News)Newly appointed CDC vaccine advisory committee holds first meeting, stirs more controversy (CIDRAP) FDA approves clesrovimab to protect infants during first RSV season (Contemporary Pediatrics) ACIP updates: Committee recommends clesrovimab for RSV, reaffirms routine influenza vaccination (Contemporary Pediatrics)Susan Monarez (Wikipedia)Robert F Kennedy Jr (Wikipedia) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Wikipedia)Who is in charge at the CDC (CDC: About CDC)Do children REALLY need to be vaccinated? (Wall Street Journal)U.S. Adults’ Views on Routine Childhood Vaccination (Harvard Opinion Research Program)RFK Jr. declares US withdrawal from GAVI (YouTube)Kennedy Withdraws U.S. Funding Pledge to International Vaccine Agency (NY Times) Millions of children at risk as global vaccine rates fall (Guardian)Global, regional, and national trends in routine childhood vaccination coverage from 1980 to 2023 with forecasts to 2030 (LANCET)Polio this week: 47 WPV1 positive environmental samples this week! (GPEI) H5 bird flu: current situation (CDC: Avian Influenza)Cambodia logs fifth death from H5N1 avian flu as USDA weighs poultry vaccination (CIDRAP)Cambodia reports 6th H5N1 bird flu case this year(BNO News)USDA develops potential plan to vaccinate poultry for bird flu (Reuters) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)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)Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)Weekly surveillance report: clift notes (CDC FluView) FDA-CDC-DOD: 2025-2046 influenza vaccine composition (FDA)RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)Novel Drug Approvals for 2025 (FDA)Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)COVID-19 deaths (CDC)COVID-19 national and regional trends (CDC)COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)...
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    49 mins
  • TWiV 1229: Virology throughout Europe

    TWiV 1229: Virology throughout Europe
    Jun 22 2025

    Rich travels to Dubrovnik for the European Congress of Virology 2025 and Vincent joins via Zoom to speak with Stéphane Blanc, Vanda Juranić Lisnić, and Elisabeth Puchhammer-Stöckl about their work on plant viruses, cytomegalovirus, and Epstein-Barr virus.

    Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Rich Condit

    Guests: Stéphane Blanc, Vanda Juranić Lisnić, and Elisabeth Puchhammer-Stöckl

    Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email

    Become a patron of TWiV!

    Links for this episode
    • Support science education at MicrobeTV
    • Assembled plant viruses move through plants (PLoS Path)
    • Genome formula of multipartite virus (PLoS Path)
    • Immune surveillance of cytomegalovirus in tissues (Cell Mol Immunol)
    • Cytomegalovirus and NK cells (Nat Commun)
    • Epstein-Barr virus and multiple sclerosis (J Clin Inves)
    • Epstein-Barr virus and lymphoproliferative disease (Transplant)
    • Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!

    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.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 23 mins

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