A Statement from the Global Virus Network (GVN) on the Passing of Dr. Diane Griffin
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Dr. Diane Griffin was an inaugural member of the GVN and recipient of the 2017 GVN Robert C. Gallo Award for Scientific Excellence and Leadership
Tampa, FL, USA, November 5, 2024: The Global Virus Network (GVN) mourns the passing of the 2017 GVN Robert C. Gallo Award for Scientific Excellence and Leadership Awardee, Diane Griffin, PhD, MD, who, at the time of her death, was Chair Emeritus of the W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Vice President of the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Griffin was a leader in the field of pathogenesis of viral infections, particularly related to measles and alphavirus encephalomyelitis, and she was a GVN Center of Excellence Director dedicated to advancing the GVN mission. Dr. Griffin was a tremendous scientist, mentor, and beloved colleague.
“Professor Diane Griffin was a towering figure in our field, having unearthed vital truths about measles and alphaviruses, and in making immense contributions to the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University and to the GVN,” said Sten H. Vermund, MD, PhD, Anna M.R. Lauder Professor of Public Health, Yale School of Public Health, Professor of Pediatrics, Yale School of Medicine and President of the GVN. “As recently as July of this year, Dr. Griffin taught in our GVN Short Course held at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), inspiring and educating a new generation of virology research leaders.”
Dr. Griffin’s essential research encompassed the mechanisms of how viruses infect humans and how we respond to those viruses. Her work uncovered how viruses impact the nervous system and the immune system, as well as long-term virus infection and its effect on human health.
Said Maggie Bartlett, PhD, Assistant Research Professor, Bloomberg School of Public health and Program Director at the GVN, "Diane was not just a mentor; she was a beacon of wisdom. Her unwavering support and guidance inspired me to pursue and strive for excellence. Though she may no longer be with us, her legacy will forever illuminate our paths, reminding us to persist just like her favorite viruses."
Dr. Griffin's research interests included alphaviruses, acute encephalitis and measles. Alphaviruses are transmitted by mosquitoes and cause encephalitis in mammals and birds. She identified determinants of virus virulence and mechanisms of non-cytolytic clearance of virus from infected neurons. Her studies of measles focused on identification of the mechanisms of virus-induced immuno-suppression in the context of virus clearance. Dr. Griffin’s vaccine studies helped define the basis for atypical measles and a new vaccine that could induce protective immunity in infants under the age of 6 months. She was the author or co-author of more than 300 scholarly papers and articles and was the past president of the American Society for Virology, Association of Medical School Microbiology and Immunology Chairs and the American Society for Microbiology. She was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Microbiology and the Institute of Medicine.
Robert C. Gallo, MD, James P. Cullison Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, Director, University of South Florida (USF) Health Virology Center, Director, Microbial Oncology Program, Tampa General Hospital (TGH) Cancer Institute, and Chairman, Scientific Leadership Board and Co-Founder of the GVN, said “Diane, as everyone knows, was a great virologist and a true leader in her field. She was known as a superb mentor and great friend. She was a leader from the start in the GVN, and her career at the Bloomberg School of Public Health was exemplary. Diane combined professional attributes with her warm smile and kind heart. We will miss her deeply, and we will never forget her. Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and colleagues around the world.”
About the Global Virus Network (GVN) The GVN, headquartered at the University of South Florida, is essential and critical in the preparedness, defense, and first research response to emerging, existing, and unidentified viruses that pose a clear and present threat to public health. Working in close coordination with established national and international institutions, the GVN is a coalition comprised of eminent human and animal virologists from 80+ Centers of Excellence and Affiliates in 40+ countries, working collaboratively to train the next generation, advance knowledge about how to identify and diagnose pandemic viruses, mitigate and control how such viruses spread and make us sick, as well as develop drugs, vaccines, and treatments to combat them. No single institution in the world has expertise in all viral areas other than the GVN, which brings together the finest medical virologists to leverage their individual expertise and coalesce global teams of specialists on the scientific challenges, issues, and problems posed by pandemic viruses. The GVN is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, please visit www.gvn.org.
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