Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most pressing global health issues of the 21st Century. In 2016, Dr. Strathdee was involved in a remarkable case where she and her colleagues revived a hundred year old forgotten cure—bacteriophage therapy—which saved her husband’s life from a deadly superbug infection.  Since then, UC San Diego faculty have used intravenous phage therapy to successfully treat superbug infections in over a dozen other compassionate use cases, including the first use of a genetically modified phage cocktail.  In 2018, UC San Diego’s Chancellor provided seed funding to launch the Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics (IPATH), the first dedicated phage therapy center in North America.  Strathdee will share the details of her family’s story and discuss ethical issues related to treating bacterial infections with viruses, where the drug is ‘alive.’

Speaker: 

Steffanie Strathdee, PhD, Associate Dean of Global Health Sciences, Harold Simon Professor, UCSD Department of Medicine, Co-Director, Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics.

Webinar Link: https://ucsd.zoom.us/j/99620488960