📄 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

Simulation of synthetic health records for assessment of causal inference methods for vaccine efficacy

This paper demonstrates that low-fidelity synthetic datasets, generated from the EAVE-II platform using marginal structural models to simulate various confounding scenarios, can effectively validate causal inference methods for vaccine efficacy assessment, particularly showing that inverse probability of treatment weighting is necessary to recover true causal parameters under strong confounding.

Velasco Pardo, V., Daines, L., Katikireddi, S. V., Ritchie, L., Robertson, C., Simpson, C. R., McCowan, C., Swallow, B.2026-07-20
📄 infectious diseases

Malaria burden and care in hard-to-reach indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon during the COVID-19 pandemic: A mixed-methods study

This mixed-methods study reveals that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated malaria burdens in remote Peruvian Amazon indigenous communities by disrupting healthcare access and control activities, resulting in high infection rates and highlighting the urgent need to strengthen surveillance and ensure continuity of care in isolated regions.

Fernandez, S. P., Rojas, L. M., Gomez, J., Sandoval-Bances, J., Condori-Catachura, S., Garcia, P. D., Abrams, S., Anthie (…)2026-07-15
📄 infectious diseases

Characterization of an Arctic-like 1a rabies virus from a 54-day-old puppy with atypical presentation, Pune, India, 2026

This study characterizes a near-complete genome of an Arctic-like 1a rabies virus from a 54-day-old puppy in Pune, India, which presented with atypical pruritus and self-biting, thereby highlighting the diagnostic challenges of neonatal canine rabies and the importance of genomic surveillance in endemic regions.

Ullas, P. T., Sharma, V., Vipat, V., Choudhari, S., Ashraf, A. F., Raju, R. M., Kotturi, V., Sakhare, K. S., Bondre, V. (…)2026-07-13
📄 infectious diseases

Framework to estimate the cost-effectiveness of the Genome Sequencing-based surveillance network: an integrated operational model-epidemiological model approach

This paper presents an integrated operational-epidemiological framework demonstrating that optimizing both sampling strategies and sequencing capacity within India's genomic surveillance network is critical for timely variant detection, effective intervention, and cost-effective health outcomes.

Jha, M., Reddy, K. N. A., Arinaminpathy, N., Mehndiratta, A., Guzman, J., Devalkar, S., Deo, S.2026-07-13
📄 infectious diseases

Pre-existing antibodies predict protection while mucosal inflammation correlates with symptomatic Bordetella pertussis infection

This study utilizing a controlled human infection model reveals that pre-existing serum antibodies protect against *Bordetella pertussis* infection, while symptomatic disease is driven by localized nasal inflammation dominated by myeloid cells rather than systemic immune responses, highlighting the critical role of mucosal immunity in vaccine design.

Willemsen, L., Ren, Z., Shinde, P., Thrupp, N., Lee, J., Gupta, A., Sutherland, A., Orfield, S., Koijma, M., Azhan, A. (…)2026-07-09
📄 infectious diseases

Common genetic determinants of dynamic human in vivo immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

By integrating genotyping with RNA-sequencing of tuberculin skin test biopsies, this study identifies key genetic determinants of the human immune response to *Mycobacterium tuberculosis*, highlighting the roles of *ERAP2* expression, HLA class II pathways, and cell-cycle control in TB susceptibility and antigen-specific immunity.

Zhang, P., Turner, C. T., Chandran, A., Parks, T., Rosenheim, J., Jiang, J., Bell, L. C., Rose-Key, R., Berkeley, M., Ca (…)2026-07-09
📄 infectious diseases

Reimagining youth-responsive TB care: Voices and visions from adolescents and young adults who completed TB treatment in Nairobi, Kenya

This participatory qualitative study in Nairobi, Kenya, engaged adolescents and young adults who completed TB treatment alongside stakeholders to co-create youth-responsive service improvements, revealing that while social support and diagnosis were pivotal, significant barriers like diagnostic delays and stigma necessitate practical adaptations such as flexible clinic hours, enhanced privacy, and peer support.

Karisa, R. P., Ringwald, B., Awinja, A. C., Kagima, J. W., Nyaboke, D., Simba, J., Mwirigi, N., Sakwa, E. N., Macharia (…)2026-07-06✓ Author reviewed ⓘ
📄 infectious diseases

Health-economic burden of chikungunya infection and potential cost-effectiveness of preventive vaccination in 31 countries

This study models the substantial health and economic burden of chikungunya across 31 countries from 2025 to 2050, demonstrating that preventive vaccination campaigns, particularly standalone population-wide efforts, are highly cost-effective with threshold costs ranging from $1.11 to $48.10 per dose.

Zhou, J., Salant, N., Radoykova, H.-S., Messina, J., Wint, W., Longbottom, J., Holohan, K. M., Dinkel, K. A., Sytsma, M. (…)2026-07-03
📄 infectious diseases

Identifying and Prioritizing Barriers to TB Prevention and Care in High-Burden Countries: A Community-Engaged Approach Using Best-Worst Scaling

Through a community-engaged Best-Worst Scaling study involving 81 stakeholders across 28 countries, researchers identified and prioritized key multi-level barriers to tuberculosis care in high-burden settings, revealing that systems-level supply challenges, financial factors, and inadequate holistic care are the most impactful issues while highlighting specific high-priority targets for intervention in both Asian and African regions.

Kerkhoff, A. D., Singh, K., Kubai, N., Namasivayam, M., Angami, K., Cox, S. R., Hanrahan, C. F., Sigerman, T., Brandner (…)2026-07-01
📄 infectious diseases

Climate and topography shape malaria transmission in lowland Busia and highland Meru counties, Kenya

A comparative study of Busia and Meru counties in Kenya reveals that cooler highland climates and distinct topographic features significantly limit vector presence and malaria transmission, whereas warmer lowland environments sustain higher mosquito densities and infection rates.

Ndenga, B. A., Agola, G. A., Owuor, K. O., Mbakaya, J. O., Ronga, C. O., Chepkorir, E., Kibe, L. W., Akala, H. M.2026-07-01