Episodes

  • TWiV Special: Albert Sabin with Karen Torghele

    TWiV Special: Albert Sabin with Karen Torghele
    Jun 29 2026

    Vincent speaks with Karen Torghele about her recently published biography of polio vaccine pioneer Albert Sabin, the first ever written.

    Host: Vincent Racaniello

    Guest: Karen Torghele

    Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email

    Links for this episode
    • Karen Torghele's website
    • Purchase Albert Sabin by Karen Torghele (Bookshop or Amazon)
    • My letters from Albert Sabin (virology blog)

    Become a patron of TWiV!

    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 10 mins
  • TWiV 1335: TldR, bacterial hot rods and nullifying norovirus

    TWiV 1335: TldR, bacterial hot rods and nullifying norovirus
    Jun 28 2026

    TWiV explains research showing how temperate phages enhance bacterial host fitness via RNA-guided flagellar remodelling, and that IgA antibody is necessary and sufficient to prevent norovirus infection in mice.

    Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, Brianne Barker, and Jolene Ramsey

    Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email

    Become a patron of TWiV!

    Links for this episode
    • Support science education at MicrobeTV
    • Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email)
    • Fred Murphy passes away (X)
    • US has lost its hold on measles elimination (CIDRAP)
    • What's in the genetic code of America's measles outbreaks (ProPublica)
    • Did Pete Hegseth single-handedly raise the R₀ of flu? (Inside Medicine)
    • Fred Murphy's Virus Images and Foundations of Virology (UTMB)
    • Temperate phages and RNA-guided flagellar remodelling (Nat Micro)
    • Eukaryotic RNA guided system (Nature)
    • IgA prevents norovirus infection in mice (Sci Transl Med)
    • Craig Wilen's letter to TWiV (TWiV 492)
    • Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
    Picks of the Week

    Brianne – APod June 26: Milky Way Urban Style
    Rich – Your birth order affects your future, but not for the reason you think; Dr. McCoy
    Jolene – Bakteriopolis paper and site
    Vincent – The Claude Shutdown Is a Total Sh*tshow

    Listener Pick

    Martin – Ancient text charred by Vesuvius read for first time in 2,000 years

    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 56 mins
  • TWiV 1334: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin

    TWiV 1334: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
    Jun 27 2026
    In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello discuss the global economic burden of infectious disease, restoring trust in vaccinology, the Legionnaires outbreak in Harlem, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and an import case into France, end of the hantavirus outbreak before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, outbreak of measles in Cook County Illionis in 2025, loss of measles elimination in the US, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, publication of the blocked COVID-19 vaccine findings, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, 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 Health and economic burdens of emerging infectious diseases in the USA, US territories and globally (BMJ Journal of Global Health)Meeting People Where They Are: Scientist-Creators Delivering Trusted Health Information on Social Media and Beyond (The Evidence Collective)Vaccine Integrity Project, The Evidence Collective announce projects to improve vaccine policy, restore trust (CIDRAP)Outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease Associated with Cooling Tower Systems in Central Harlem (NEJM Evidence)Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom)Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)France confirms first Ebola case (BBC)Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up)Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (microbeTV)Health agencies signal end of quarantine period for cruise-linked Andes virus outbreak (DG:Alerts)HHS Successfully Concludes Hantavirus Response Effort; Monitoring Ends with No Positive U.S. Case (US: HHS) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health)Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)US measles cases continue to climb, especially in Virginia (CIDRAP)Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health)Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)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)Measles Outbreak in Cook County, Illinois, September–October 2025 (NEJM Evidence) CDC 'transitioning away' from diagnostic testing for measles, mumps (POLITICO PRO)CIDRAP Op-Ed: Call it what it is—the US has lost its hold on measles elimination (CIDRAP)Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)Weekly surveillance report: clift notes (CDC FluView)US military requires flu vaccine for some after outbreak in Texas training center (Reuters) OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan) Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)Vaccines for Adults (CDC: Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV)) Economic Analysis of Protein Subunit and mRNA RSV Vaccination in Adults aged 50-59 Years (CDC: ACIP) Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public Health)Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)COVID-19 deaths (CDC)Respiratory Illnesses Data Channel (CDC: Respiratory Illnesses)COVID-19 national and regional trends (CDC)COVID-19 variant tracker (CDC)SARS-CoV-2 genomes galore (Nextstrain)CDC's chief blocked a ...
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    31 mins
  • TWiV 1333: STING like a nanoparticle, float like HIV

    TWiV 1333: STING like a nanoparticle, float like HIV
    Jun 21 2026

    TWiV explains research showing how HIV-1 signalling remodels nuclear pores to licence infection, and development of STING agonist nanoparticles to enable coordinated mucosal-systemic immunity for durable pan-β-coronavirus protection.

    Hosts: VVincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker

    Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email

    Become a patron of TWiV!

    Links for this episode
    • Support science education at MicrobeTV
    • Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email)
    • Bundibugyo ebolavirus sitrep (WHO)
    • Ebolavirus and Andes virus with John Dye (TWiV Special)
    • Major research nonhuman primate supplier going out of business (Science)
    • HIV-1 signalling remodels nuclear pores to licence infection (Nature)
    • STING agonist nanoparticles enable mucosal-systemic immunity (Nature Nanoparticles)
    • Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
    Picks of the Week

    Brianne – Otherworldly music albums feature space weather data
    Rich – Evidence Mapping: Consolidating and summarising available evidence to support the demonstration of effectiveness of developmental vaccines, Australian Living Evidence Collaboration (ALEC)
    Alan – Holyoke dam fish elevator
    Vincent – 68 Quadrillion Underground Miles of Fungi

    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 Special: Ebola virus and Andes virus with John Dye

    TWiV Special: Ebola virus and Andes virus with John Dye
    Jun 20 2026

    Vincent travels to ASM Microbe in Washington DC to speak with John Dye of the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases about the recent outbreaks of Bundibugyo ebolavirus in Africa and Andes virus on a cruise ship.

    Host: Vincent Racaniello

    Guest: John Dye

    Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, RSS, email

    Become a patron of TWiV!

    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
    57 mins
  • TWiV 1332: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin

    TWiV 1332: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
    Jun 20 2026
    In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello express concern about vaccine policy and ACIP, scaling back of the CDC's role in global public health, shingles vaccine and dementia, new screwworm cases, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda and where the hantavirus outbreak began, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics on RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, Virgina outbreak of measles, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, how more people were negatively impacted by influenza than COVID, discontinuing contact precautions for COVID, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, 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 Today we filed a motion asking the First Circuit to expedite our appeal of the district court's order in the AAP lawsuit that left ACIP—the nation's vaccine advisory committee—without a quorum (X) CDC advisers drop decades-old universal hepatitis B birth dose recommendation, suggest blood testing after 1 dose (CIDRAP)HHS asks for expedited appeal of court ruling on US vaccine policy (CIDRAP)New Plan Scales Back C.D.C.'s Work on Diseases Abroad (NY Times)Zoster Vaccination and Dementia: Interpreting the Signal and Testing the Mechanisms (CID)Safety and Immunogenicity of 1 or 2 Additional Doses of the Adjuvanted Recombinant Zoster Vaccine Administered 5–6 Years After Primary Vaccination in Adults ≥50 Years (OFID)Dashboard SCREWWORM.Gov (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)CDC Activates Emergency Operations Center for New World Screwworm Response (CDC Newroom)Head-to-head comparison suggests flu was much more likely to lead to hospitalization than COVID last winter (CIDRAP)FDA Issues Emergency Use Authorization for Generic Over-the-Counter Drug to Treat New World Screwworm in Dogs and Cats (FDA)Fact Sheet: Emergency Use Authorization of Nitenpyram Tablets (nitenpyram) for New World Screwworm (NWS) (FDA)Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola) Big Ebola outbreak puts spotlight on little known virus (Science)Ebola outbreak spreads to crowded displacement camp in Congo (Reuters)Ebola outbreak in DR Congo expands into large displacement camp (CIDRAP)Congo Ebola outbreak may be worst ever, Africa CDC says (Reuters)Advocacy groups are urging the release of the monoclonal antibody MBP134 and any other requested investigational therapeutics (Citizen.org)Hantavirus dashboard (Hantavirus.upHantavirus on board with Prof. Vincent Racaniello (microbeTV)How did the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak start? (Science) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard( South Carolina Department of Public Health)Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) UtahMeasles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)US measles cases continue to climb, especially in Virginia(CIDRAP)Measles (VDH: Virginia Department of Health)Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)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)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)Anguished Parents, Crying Doctors: Life Amid Utah's Measles Outbreak (Wired)Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Measles During an Outbreak — West Texas, January–March 2025 (CDC:MMWR)Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)USrespiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses)Respiratory virus activity levels (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)Weekly surveillance report: clift notes (CDC FluView)Influenza Vaccine and Associated Infection and Death in California, 2024 to 2025 (JAMA Network OPEN) OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)RSV: Waste water scan for 11 ...
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    54 mins
  • TWiV 1331: A drug for cervical cancer

    TWiV 1331: A drug for cervical cancer
    Jun 14 2026

    TWiV explains research showing that dairy cows are infected with low doses of influenza A(H5N1) and do not transmit efficiently to other animals, and covalent inhibitors of human papillomavirus type 16 E6 protein that restore p53 function and suppress growth of HPV-driven tumors in vivo.

    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
    • Positions in Rosenfeld Lab (email)
    • Letter on Baric funding ban (Science, scroll to bottom)
    • New political jobs at science agencies (Science)
    • Ebola sitrep (WHO)
    • Influenza H5N1 infection of dairy cows (Nat Comm)
    • Drug for cervical cancer (PNAS)
    • Timestamps by Jolene Ramsey. Thanks!
    Picks of the Week

    Angela – SpaceX
    Brianne – Honeybees and shrimp are now getting vaccinated
    Rich – "Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys" by Michael Collins
    Vincent – NTSB Reveals What Really Happened to United 169

    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 58 mins
  • TWiV 1330: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin

    TWiV 1330: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
    Jun 13 2026
    In his weekly clinical update, Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello opine on the recent executive order on the routine childhood vaccination schedule, the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda including the fast track trials for 2 vaccine candidates and antivirals, recent Hantavirus infections, use of quarantined "Hantavirus" patients for the governmental propaganda machine, use of ribavirin and other antivirals for Hantavirus associated cardiopulmonary disease, before Dr. Griffin deep dives into the measles outbreak, recent statistics RSV, influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections, the Wasterwater Scan dashboard, Johns Hopkins measles tracker, the measles outbreak in Bangladesh, as well as in a daycare center in Texas in 2025, how to access and pay for Paxlovid, FDA approval of a second COVID-19 antiviral drug, where to go for answers about long COVID-19, use of convalescent sera for COVID-19 treatment 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 Childhood Vaccine Hesitancy (NEJM)One Year In: Public Views of a Changing Public Health Landscape (Harvard School of Public Health) Rotavirus Vaccine Coverage and Potential Barriers Among US Children Born From 2007 to 2024 (Pediatrics)Texas reports New World screwworm in 3-week-old calf (CIDRAP)USDA Confirms First Case of New World Screwworm in a Dog in Lea County, New Mexico, Fourth Case in Texas (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) Confirmed Detections of New World Screwworm (USDA: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)Mexico reports more human New World screwworm infections (CIDRAP)Frequency and persistence of post-acute symptoms after chikungunya, dengue, Zika and malaria in travellers: a prospective multi-centre study (Journal of Travel Medicine)Ebola dashboard (ebola.fyi) EBOLA:The Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 (WHO) Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak Democratic Republic of the Congo (WHO: Democratic Republic of Congo)Ebola Outbreak: Current Situation (CDC:Ebola)Modeled Scenario Projections for the Ebola Disease Outbreak Caused by Bundibugyo Virus, 2026 (CDC: MMWR)Assessment of Riskto the U.S. Population from the Ebola Disease Outbreak Caused by Bundibugyo Virus, 2026 (CDC: MMWR)How Ebola Disease Spreads (CDC: Ebola)Signs and Symptoms of Ebola Disease (CDC: Ebola)Hantavirusdashboard (Hantavirus.up)Hantavirus on board with Prof. VincentRacaniello (MicrobeTV)Some hantavirus-exposed cruise ship passengers return home to finish quarantine (CNN)Use of tocilizumab for severe hantavirus pulmonary syndrome: a MEURI case series with contextual comparisons (LANCET: Infectious Diseases)First reported case of Andes hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome treated with a combination of favipiravir, ribavirin, icatibant and baricitinib (Clinical Microbiology and Infection) Wastewater for measles (WasterWater Scan)Measles cases and outbreaks (CDC Rubeola)Big outbreak, bright lights…Measles Dashboard (South Carolina Department of Public Health)Utah measles outbreak response (Utah Department of Health and Human Services) Utah Measles Dashboard (Utah Department of Health and Human Services)Tracking Measles Cases in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins)Measles vaccine recommendations from NYP (jpg)Weekly measles and rubella monitoring (Government of Canada)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)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)Anguished Parents, Crying Doctors: Life Amid Utah's Measles Outbreak (Wired)Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Measles During an Outbreak — West Texas, January–March 2025 (CDC:MMWR)Influenza: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)US respiratory virus activity (CDC Respiratory Illnesses) Flu vaccine recommendations: Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee March 12, 2026 Meeting Announcement (FDA)WHO updates all 3 viral strains to be included in fall flu shots (CIDRAP)FDA vaccine advisers recommend adding subclade K to fall shots (CIDRAP)Weekly surveillance report: cliff notes (CDC FluView) OPTION 2: XOFLUZA $50 Cash Pay Option (xofluza)RSV: Waste water scan for 11 pathogens (WastewaterSCan)RSV-Network (CDC Respiratory Syncytial virus Infection)Vaccines for Adults (CDC: Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV)) Economic Analysis of Protein Subunit and mRNA RSV Vaccination in Adults aged 50-59 Years (CDC: ACIP) Respiratory Diseases (Yale School of Public ...
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    1 hr and 11 mins