![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/d41586-026-00468-1_52051262.jpg\"\/)
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
The NIAID funds high-containment biosafety level-4 laboratories, in which research on highly infectious and deadly viruses is performed. Credit: Olivier Douliery\/AFP via Getty<\/p>\n
Staff members at the United States\u2019s premier infectious-disease research institute have been instructed to remove the words \u201cbiodefense\u201d and \u201cpandemic preparedness\u201d from the institute\u2019s web pages, according to e-mails Nature has obtained.<\/p>\n
The directive comes amid a broader shake-up at the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of 27 institutes and centres at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIAID is expected to deprioritize the two topics in an overhaul of its funded research projects, according to four NIAID employees who spoke to Nature on the condition of anonymity, because they are not authorized to speak to the press.<\/p>\n
NIH rolls back red tape on some experiments \u2014 spurring excitement and concern<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n NIH director Jay Bhattacharya<\/a> explained the restructure at an event with other top agency officials on 30 January. \u201cIt\u2019s a complete transformation of [the NIAID] away from this old model\u201d that has historically prioritized research on HIV, biodefence and pandemic preparedness, he said. The institute will focus more on basic immunology and other infectious diseases currently affecting people in the United States, he added, rather than on predicting future diseases.<\/p>\n About one-third of the NIAID\u2019s US$6.6-billion budget currently funds projects involving emerging infectious diseases and biodefence. The research studies pathogens of concern and monitors their spread, and develops medical countermeasures against threats from radiation exposure, chemicals and infectious diseases.<\/p>\n Nahid Bhadelia, director of Boston University\u2019s Center on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Massachusetts, says the decision to deprioritize these areas will leave people in the United States more vulnerable to pathogens that are constantly evolving in wildlife around the world and spilling into human populations, sometimes sparking outbreaks. \u201cJust because we say we\u2019re going to stop caring about these issues doesn\u2019t make the issues go away \u2014 it just makes us less prepared,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for the NIH, the world\u2019s largest public funder of biomedical science<\/a>, based in Bethesda, Maryland, says, \u201cNIAID\u2019s new vision sharpens its focus on the interconnected pillars of infectious diseases and immunology, expanding opportunities for research that address the most pressing challenges to Americans\u2019 health today.\u201d The spokesperson declined to respond to Nature’s queries about the agency\u2019s specific plans to restructure the institute.<\/p>\n Political heat<\/p>\n The NIAID is currently under the leadership of acting director Jeffery Taubenberger, after its previous director, infectious-disease physician Jeanne Marrazzo, was fired by the administration of US President Donald Trump after less than two years into the post. Her predecessor, Anthony Fauci, held the job for 38 years.<\/p>\n Exclusive: key NIH review panels due to lose all members by the end of 2026<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/d41586-026-00468-1_52020962.jpg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/d41586-026-00468-1_51972742.jpg\"\/)
<\/p>\n