Joseph B. McCormick, M.D., M.S. 1971, Duke University 1970, Harvard University UT-Houston School of Public Health Epidemiology My laboratory is located in Brownsville, Texas, at the Regional Campus of the School of Public Health. Contact Information

Research Interests: tuberculosis, early immunologic and microbiologic events in infection, molecular epidemiology (MDR TB). HIV glycoprotein chemistry and immunology, genetic susceptibility to infectious diseases

My research includes laboratory and human aspects of tuberculosis, particularly early infection. We are aiming to understand the early immunological events (particularly innate immune response events) in early infection. We are also looking at immunologic measures in individuals with diabetes to determine why they are more susceptible to tuberculosis. We are also developing an early diagnostic assay for TB DNA using QPCR.

Our laboratory has developed an approach to HIV vaccine using novel chemistry that conjugates a small carrier protein to the HIV envelop glycoprotein inducing a unique type of antibody to the envelop protein. We will be investigating this further at the basic chemistry level as well as in animal models.

Finally, working with colleagues in Houston, we are looking at molecular markers of risk for cervical cancer in women infected with human papilloma virus. These include integration events as well as other molecular events as measured by QPCR on self administered vaginal swabs. Our ultimate goal is to develop an HPV vaccine site for the Lower Rio Grande Valley and Northern Mexico.

We are interested in using our existing study population to look at genetic susceptibility to infection and to disease.

Depending on the interest of the student, they may become involved in any of the laboratory aspects of the studies described above, ranging from studies of immune response in early TB, to molecular diagnosis of TB infection, to working on the HIV vaccine to the work on HPV infection. All of these projects will allow students to see both the laboratory side as well as the human population side of translational research.

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Publications reflect a range of work and time

McCormick JB , Webb PA, Scribner CL, King IJ, Johnson KM, Elliott LH, Craven RB: Lassa Fever: Effective Therapy with Ribavirin. NEJM 314:20-26, 1986.

Gnann JW, McCormick JB, Mitchell S, Nelson JA, Oldstone MBA. Synthetic Peptide immunoassay Distinguishes HIV Type 1 and HIV Type 2 Infections. 1987 Science 237:1346-1349.

Benn S, Rutledge R, Martin M, Folks T, Lane C, Gold J, Baker L, McCormick JB, Feorino PM, Quinn T: Genomic Heterogeneity of AIDS Retroviral Isolates from North America and Zaire. 1985. Science 230:949-51.

Brun-Vezinet F, Piot P, Quinn T, McCormick JB, Montagnier L. Antibodies to LAV in Populations from Zaire 1984 Science 226:453-454.

Piot P et al McCormick JB : Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome in a Heterosexual Population in Zaire. Lancet, 1984 pp 65-69.

Fisher-Hoch SP, Khan JA, Rehman S, Mirza S, Khurshid M, McCormick JB. Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever treated with oral ribavirin. Lancet 1995;346:472-475.

E M Leroy, S Baize, Volchkov VE, Georges-Courbot MC, Lansoud-Soukate J, Capron M, Debré P, McCormick JB, Georges AJ, Human asymptomatic Ebola infection is associated with a robust inflammatory response. Lancet. 2000 Jun 24;355(9222):2210-5.

Khan AJ, Luby SP, Fikree F, Karim A, Obaid S, Dellawala S, Mirza S, Malik T, Fisher-Hoch S, McCormick JB Unsafe injections and the transmission of hepatitis B and C in a periurban community in Pakistan.Bull World Health Organ. 2000;78(8):956-63.

Baize S, Eric M. Leroy E, Georges-Courbot M-C. Fisher-Hoch SP, Debré P, Capron M, Lansoud-Soukate J,. McCormick JB, Georges AJ. Defective humoral responses and extensive intravascular apoptosis are associated with fatal outcome in Ebola Virus-infected patients Nat Med 1999 Apr;5(4):423-6

C.Besson, G.Pialoux, B. Dupont, S. Pol, O. Hermine, B.Arnulf, A; Landau, McCormick JB. Lack of association between hcv and HIV related lymphoma Br J Haematol 1999 May;105(2):568-569

Bloland PB, Boriga DA, Ruebush TK, McCormick JB, Roberts JM, Oloo AJ, Hawley W, Lal A, Nahlen B,Campbell CC Longitudinal cohort study of the epidemiology of malaria infections in an area of intense malaria transmission II. Descriptive epidemiology of malaria infection and disease among children. Am J Trop Med Hyg 1999 Apr;60(4):641-8

Bloland PB, Ruebush TK, McCormick JB, Ayisi J, Boriga DA, Oloo AJ, Beach R, Hawley W, Lal A, Nahlen B, Udhayakumar V, Campbell CC Longitudinal cohort study of the epidemiology of malaria infections in an area of intense malaria transmission I. Description of study site, general methodology, and study population. Am J Trop Med Hyg 1999 Apr;60(4):635-40

Fisher-Hoch S.P, Hutwagner L, Brown B, McCormick J.B. Effective vaccine for lassa fever. J. Virol. 74, 6777-6783.

Restrepo BI, Shaper Mirza, Blanca I. Restrepo, Joseph B. McCormick, Susan P. Fisher-Hoch Diagnosis of tuberculosis lymphadenitis using a polymerase chain reaction on peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2003 Nov;69(5):461-5.

Baril L, Briles DE, Crozier P, King JD, Hollingshead SK, Murphy TF, McCormick JB. Natural materno-fetal transfer of antibodies to PspA and to PsaA. Clin Exp Immunol. 2004 Mar;135(3):474-7.