VIDO researcher receives funding through federal pandemic preparedness initiative

Dr. Yan Zhou, head of VIDO’s influenza research program, has received $187, 320 over two years through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) pandemic preparedness initiative.

Dr. Zhou will study how influenza virus infection leads to serious illness through the production of molecules called chemokines. Excessive inflammation, a hallmark of the disease, is related to chemokine production. By targeting the cellular events that lead to inflammatory responses, Dr. Zhou hopes to find vulnerabilities that could lead to novel strategies for treatment of influenza infection.

Link to CIHR release

Link to competition results

Previous work by Dr. Zhou