📄 Category

infectious diseases

194 papers

Infectious diseases represent one of the most dynamic frontiers in global health, covering everything from seasonal flu outbreaks to emerging viral threats that cross borders. This field focuses on how pathogens spread, how our immune systems respond, and the strategies scientists use to stop infections before they become epidemics. Because the science moves fast, waiting for traditional publication often means missing critical insights that could save lives.

At Gist.Science, we process every new preprint in this category directly from medRxiv to ensure you see the latest findings the moment they appear. Our team transforms these raw studies into both accessible plain-language explanations and detailed technical summaries, bridging the gap between complex research and public understanding. Below are the latest papers in infectious diseases, updated daily with fresh insights from the global research community.

📄 infectious diseases

Periodic intensification of routine immunization (PIRI): modeling a novel strategy to supplement routine and pulsed measles vaccination

This study uses a stochastic age-structured SIR model to demonstrate that Periodic Intensification of Routine Immunization (PIRI) can outperform or match Supplemental Immunization Activities (SIAs) in reducing measles cases, particularly in settings with intermediate routine immunization coverage or those experiencing continuously increasing coverage.

Zou, K., Ferrari, M.2026-02-15
📄 infectious diseases

Contribution of nosocomial transmission to Klebsiella pneumoniae neonatal sepsis in Africa and South Asia: analysis of infection clusters inferred from pathogen genomics and temporal data

By analyzing genomic and temporal data from 1,523 *Klebsiella pneumoniae* isolates across 27 neonatal units in Africa and South Asia, this study reveals that over half of neonatal sepsis cases result from preventable nosocomial transmission driven by multidrug-resistant lineages, underscoring the critical need for enhanced infection prevention and control measures.

Odih, E. E., Abdulahi, J. A., Amulele, A. V., Bates, M., Heinz, E., Hu, W., Jain, K., Magobo, R., Olwagen, C. P., Tembo (…)2026-02-13
📄 infectious diseases

Metagenomic strain tracking reveals patterns of bacterial spread and the impact of water chlorination

By applying machine learning strain tracking to metagenomic data from Kenyan communities, this study reveals that different bacterial taxa follow distinct transmission pathways—with pathogens spreading via human contact and commensals via diet—and demonstrates that water chlorination can effectively reduce community-level bacterial sharing.

Kim, D. D., Worby, C., Wharton, H., Miklos, A., Chieng, B., Njenga, S. M., Earl, A. M., Pickering, A.2026-02-11
📄 infectious diseases

Nasal Gene Expression in ART-Naive Adults with HIV and Pulmonary Tuberculosis in Uganda

This proof-of-concept study demonstrates that minimally invasive nasal gene expression profiling can effectively distinguish pulmonary tuberculosis from non-TB cases in ART-naive adults with HIV in Uganda, identifying a four-gene signature that meets WHO criteria for a TB triage test and outperforms blood-based analysis.

Khambati, N., Tamara, K. L., Nakabugo, E., Valkenburg, A. V., Anderson, J. K., Lu, S., Song, R., Gummuluru, S., Pollard (…)2026-02-09
📄 infectious diseases

Community perceptions on effectiveness and safety of indoor residual spraying for malaria control in Uganda

This qualitative study in Uganda reveals that while communities perceive indoor residual spraying as effective and safe for malaria control, specific post-spray behaviors such as smearing treated walls and discontinuing bed net use may undermine its overall impact, highlighting the need for strengthened community education and monitoring.

Ocan, M., Loyce, N., Bayiga, J., Kinalwa, G., Arinaitwe, E., Mawejje, H., Naturinda, R., Adriko, M., Kigozi, S., Nsobya (…)2026-02-07
📄 infectious diseases

Spatial mapping of Ethiopian cutaneous leishmaniasis lesions reveals distinct tissue level immune programs

By applying spatial transcriptomics to Ethiopian cutaneous leishmaniasis lesions, researchers identified five distinct, co-existing tissue-level immune programs that explain the disease's clinical heterogeneity and offer a foundation for future patient stratification and precision therapies.

Dey, N. S., Pham, T.-T., Dey, S., Kassa, M., Mekonnen, T., Fikre, H., Monsieurs, P., SPATIAL CL Consortium,, Pareyn, M. (…)2026-02-05
📄 infectious diseases

Benchmarking AWaRe: estimating optimal levels of AWaRe antibiotic use in 186 countries, territories and areas based on clinical infection and resistance burden

This study establishes the first standardized, benchmarking-based methodology to estimate optimal national levels of total and AWaRe-classified antibiotic use for 186 countries based on local infection and resistance burdens, revealing that while the global 70% Access target is appropriate, most countries currently overuse Watch antibiotics compared to these evidence-based targets.

Cook, A., Cooper, B., Thorn, M., Nguyen, N., Lim, C., Swe, M. M. M., Allel, K., Robles Aguilar, G., Moore, C. E., Lewnar (…)2026-02-02
📄 infectious diseases

Inequalities in childhood pneumococcal conjugate vaccine uptake in England before and after the change from a 2+1 to 1+1 schedule: a longitudinal study

This longitudinal study reveals that England's 2020 transition from a 2+1 to a 1+1 pneumococcal conjugate vaccine schedule led to deteriorated booster retention and widened socioeconomic inequalities in vaccine uptake, resulting in a disproportionate increase in susceptibility to invasive pneumococcal disease among children in deprived communities.

Ilechukwu, P., Hungerford, D., French, N., Hill, E. M.2026-01-30