NIH selects Jeanne Marrazzo to lead infectious diseases institute

Aug 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Wednesday that Jeanne Marrazzo had been selected to head its infectious diseases institute, months after its long-time director Anthony Fauci stepped down from the position.

Fauci is the top U.S. infectious disease official who became the face of America’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic under Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

Hugh Auchincloss served as the acting head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), after Fauci last year stepped down from the post he held since 1984.

Marrazzo, currently the director of the division of infectious diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, is expected to begin her role in the fall season, the NIH said in a statement.

The Biden administration had said in May that it intends to nominate cancer surgeon Dr. Monica Bertagnolli to lead the NIH, which is the largest biomedical research agency in the world.

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