CHRISTIAN BRÉCHOT, MD, PHD
President
Christian Bréchot, MD, PhD has served since 2017 as President of the Global Virus Network (GVN), which consists of 70+ Centers and 10+ Affiliates in over 40 countries. The GVN is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.
Dr. Bréchot is also engaged with USF Health Morsani College of Medicine since 2018 as Senior Associate Dean for Research in Global Affairs, Associate Vice President for International Partnerships and Innovation, and Professor in the Division of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine.
Prior to joining the GVN, Dr. Bréchot served as president of the Pasteur Institute from 2013 to 2017. He has also served as vice president of medical and scientific affairs at Institut-Merieux, a company that develops new approaches to fight infectious diseases and cancers. From 2002 to 2007, Dr. Bréchot served as the general director of Inserm, the French national agency for biomedical research. As professor of hepatology and cell biology at Necker School of Medicine, Paris Descartes University, Dr. Bréchot led the clinical department of liver diseases at Necker-Enfants Maldes Hospital from 1997 to 2001.
Authoring more than 400 articles in medical and scientific journals, Dr. Bréchot was ranked by the Institute for Scientific Information as the 4th most cited author on the topic of hepatitis C. He has been recognized as an inventor on 18 patents, and helped create three biotechnology companies: Rarecells, ALFACT Innovation, and The Healthy Aging Company.
Dr. Bréchot’s research activities have focused on viral hepatitis: hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV), particularly with regard to their role in liver cancer (Hepatocellular carcinoma: HCC) and to the molecular mechanisms that drive liver regeneration and cancer (in particular, cell cycle deregulation and the impact of oxidative stress).
Additionally, Dr. Bréchot’s research interests include microbiomes, particularly in microbiomes and viral infections. In this respect, he is a co-founder of the Microbiome, Immunology and Infection Control (MIIM) Hub in the USF Pandemic Response Research Network (PRRN). This research hub focuses on enabling and connecting an interdisciplinary network of scientists at USF and globally. The hub’s goals are to develop precision therapies and interventions that target the human microbiome to maintain and restore human health against COVID-19 and future such pandemics. Dr. Brechot is also the head of the USF Institute on Microbiomes. He has also been the member of numerous scientific committees and societies and has received prestigious awards.
ANDREA RIDENOUR, MPA
Senior Vice President of Corporate Partnerships & Development
Andrea Ridenour leads both GVN’s Corporate Partnerships Program and the solicitation of leadership gifts to ensure GVN’s long-term viability, working in collaboration with GVN leadership and engaging its Board of Directors and partners.
Andrea brings years of experience in the development space, with a targeted focus on implementing large-scale partnerships between nonprofits, corporations, government entities and foundations. In her most recent roles with Susan G. Komen and the Colorectal Cancer Foundation, Andrea focused predominantly on building strong corporate relationships with key players the cancer space, including top-tier pharmaceutical companies. She has also held leadership positions with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network and the Conquer Cancer Foundation.
Andrea holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Journalism from the University of Iowa, a Nonprofit Leadership Certification from North Park University and a Master of Public Administration from American University in Washington, DC.
Email: [email protected]
LINMAN LI, MBA, MPH, PMP, CPH
Vice President of Operations and Partnership
Linman Li manages development and operational activities for GVN. She leads in strategic business development, contracting, partnership scoping and management in both public and private sectors as well as promoting GVN globally.
Linman brings several years of partnership building experience to GVN. In 2016, she developed a Sister City agreement between the City of Tampa and the City of Lanzhou, China. This was a unique opportunity to work with the mayors of both cities and thereafter, Linman worked as the Chair for China collaborations through the Tampa Sister Cities Committee and still directs this major partnership between Tampa and Lanzhou.
Linman received an MPH from the University of South Florida (USF) in 2019, an MBA from USF in 2013 and a BA in Finance from the Chongqing Technology and Business University, China in 2010. She has extensive knowledge in strategic business planning and development, contract negotiations, budget planning and management, organizational development, business outreach, project management, public relations, and partnership development.
Linman is the first recipient of the USF President Genshaft Outstanding Global Achievement Award and is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Tampa Bay Area Council on Foreign Relations, and Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Tampa Bay. Linman is actively involved with the Project Management Institute’s Tampa Bay Chapter.
Prior to joining GVN, Linman served as the Associate Director of USF Medicine International and Director of Asia Programs at the Morsani College of Medicine (MCoM), at USF.
Email: [email protected]
ROBERT FREDERICK, MS
Chief Content Officer
Robert Frederick is the inaugural Chief Content Officer of GVN. In this editorially independent role, he is responsible for overseeing GVN’s mission to produce authoritative science-driven information and policy perspectives within the ever-changing media content and distribution landscape.
Robert brings two decades of experience in science journalism to GVN. Previously, he was the first Digital Managing Editor of American Scientist, where he also contributed as a columnist, editor, producer, and podcaster. Prior to that, he served as Science’s Associate Online Editor and later, Web Editor, where he also created videos and hosted the magazine’s podcast. Robert additionally served as St. Louis Public Radio’s first Science Reporter, contributing to the Associated Press and NPR's national broadcasts.
Throughout his career, Robert has freelanced for a wide variety of outlets, including helping to launch the news section of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. He is also a contributor to The Science Writers' Handbook (Da Capo, 2013).
Robert's formal education includes a year-long fellowship at Harvard researching trust in science and in journalism, a masters in applied mathematics from the University of Michigan with a focus on fluid dynamics, and a triple major in mathematics, philosophy, and statistics from The University of Chicago.
He is an AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellow and a Fellow with the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard, where he teaches in the university’s journalism program.
Email: [email protected]
ALFREDO GARZINO, PHD
Program Director
Alfredo Garzino-Demo received his Doctor in Biological Sciences and Research Doctorate degrees from the University of Torino, Italy. During his postdoctoral training at the Laboratory of Tumor cell Biology of the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, he was part of the research team that reported on the HIV-suppressive properties of chemokines that bind to CCCR5. That contribution, together with the characterization, by other groups, of CCR5 as a key coreceptor for HIV, was recognized by Science magazine as “breakthrough of the year” in 1996.
Subsequently, Dr. Garzino-Demo joined the Institute of Human Virology of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. There, he furthered his research on the role of innate immunity factors, and their receptors, on HIV pathogenesis.
Recently, his research interests have broadened to Flaviviruses (ZIka, Dengue, Japanese Encephalitis Virus), and to SARS-CoV2. He has published more than 60 research papers, and has been awarded 8 patents or continuation-in-part.
Dr. Garzino-Demo is also one of the Editors-in-chief of Pathogens and Disease, and a member of the Federation of the European Microbiology Societies. He has a faculty appointment with the Department of Molecular Medicine of the University of Padova, Italy, and an adjunct faculty appointment at the Department of Microbiology and Immunology of the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Email: [email protected]
MARCUS GALLO, MS
Research Analyst & Centers Manager
Marcus Gallo leads the overall outreach and coordination with GVN’s growing member base, and manages the vetting and evaluation processes of GVN Centers of Excellence, providing project research analysis, and assisting with writing of scientific papers.
Marcus brings to GVN extensive prior knowledge in global public health. Prior to joining GVN, Marcus was an associate at the Institute of Human Virology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, working closely in the Jacques Initiative and other clinical research activities.
Marcus has an MS in healthcare administration, and has lived and worked abroad, including in one of the GVN countries – Argentina as a Marketing Analyst on a diverse product portfolio: EPO, IFN Alpha 2a/2b; Calcitonin, HCG, Carboplatin and C-GSF. Marcus also played a key role early on in the formation of GVN through analytical work which led to identification of many of the GVN Centers of Excellence.
Email: [email protected]
KEVIN KISHPAUGH
Operations Manager
Kevin oversees the daily operations of the GVN, dealing with procurement, finances, and logistical organization. Prior to joining GVN, he worked for a law firm specializing in consumer protection and ran media monitoring on a political campaign. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from The George Washington University.
Email: [email protected]
AVITA UKPABIA
GVN Academy Program Coordinator
Avita is a current Public Health Science student at the University of Maryland, College Park, pursuing a degree with a concentration in Program Management. She has previously supervised a food insecurity awareness project with a local group and interned at a non-profit organization to integrate global health efforts with the United States Congress.
Email: [email protected]
CAMERON EUBANK
Digital Marketing & Graphic Design Manager
Cameron is the current graphic designer for GVN while also helping with managing social media. He has previously worked with the marketing team at the University of Maryland Baltimore creating graphics and other medias for them. Cameron graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Memphis with additional interests in art history and web design.
Email: [email protected]
UCHENNA MILDRED UDEH
Administrative Assistant
Uchenna leads in the provision of administrative and project support to ensure workplace productivity at GVN. Prior to joining GVN, she lived and worked in Nigeria and Canada. She worked as an administrative assistant on operations for a global hotel group. She was also the sole proprietor of her small business, dealing in cultural cuisine. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology & Sociology from UNBSJ.
Email: [email protected]
MARVIN S. REITZ, JR., PHD
Marvin Reitz served forty years as a virologist-molecular biologist, first at NCI-NIH, and then at the Institute for Human Virology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore as Professor. He has advised the GVN for the past three years.
Email: [email protected]
CAROLINE VEGA, JD
Legal Advisor
Caroline provides legal support at GVN. She received her JD from Brooklyn Law School and BS in Neuroscience from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is currently barred in New York and California.
Email: [email protected]
RUBY FERRARI
Task Force/Watch Group Coordinator
B.S. from the University of Maryland on Neurobiology and Physiology and is currently working on her MPH at George Washington University. She is originally from Venezuela (fluent in Spanish, English and Italian). She also has a cat, loves to hike, and likes to play TTRPGs in her free time.
