Today on Athens News Matters, fungal infections are a growing issue—the UGA researcher developing a vaccine. Plus, a local activist on a recent statewide award.
Encore segment: Fungal vaccine research at UGA
As the winter weather continues, so do winter illnesses. We’re used to bacterial and viral infections—but what about infections caused by fungi? According to experts, fungal infections are understudied. But—they can cause severe illness, and can even be deadly.
In this encore installment of A Few Minutes With, Dr. Karen Norris, the Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Immunology and Translational Biomedicine at the University of Georgia, joins James Hataway to discuss her pioneering work to develop the first vaccine designed to prevent fungal infections.
She explains why fungal infections deserve far more attention, why they’re so difficult to combat, and how her team’s research could transform the way doctors protect vulnerable patients. Here’s their conversation.
Encore Segment: Athens activist Brittany Lopez on award
Brittany Lopez has received much of her education in Athens, and she uses the support she received to pour back into the community. A recent graduate of Cedar Shoals High School and the University of Georgia, she was selected last summer as one of the 50 Most Influential Latinos in Georgia by the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. She is the only honoree to be chosen from Clarke County.
Lopez is also the Food Access Coordinator with the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia. In this rebroadcast of their interview, she sits down with WUGA’s Emma Auer to discuss what motivates her—and the advice she has for young Athenians.
Encore Segment: O-Jeremiah Agbaakin writes poetry that witnesses
O-Jeremiah Agbaakin is a PhD student in the University of Georgia’s Creative Writing Program. He received his MFA from the University of Mississippi and has been published by the Kenyon Review and POETRY Magazine. In this rebroadcast, he sat down with WUGA’s Emma Auer to read his work.
