National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It was originally established in 1948 as The National Microbiological Institute, which became NIAID in 1955. NIAID conducts and supports basic and applied research to better understand, treat, and ultimately prevent infectious, immunologic, and allergic diseases. This research has led to new therapies, vaccines, diagnostic tests, and other technologies that have improved the health of millions of people in the United States and around the world. NIAID is composed of seven research divisions: The Division of AIDS (DAIDS); the Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation (DAIT); the Division of Clinical Research (DCR); the Division of Extramural Activities (DEA); the Division of Intramural Research (DIR); the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID); and the Dale and Betty Bumpers Vaccine Research Center (VRC). DAIDS, DAIT, and DMID direct and manage grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements that support research at external academic and research institutions (known as extramural research), while DCR, DIR, and the VRC conduct studies and clinical investigations within NIAID laboratories (known as intramural research).
Following Dr. Anthony Fauci’s retirement as the Director of NIAID on December 31, 2022, Dr. Hugh Auchincloss has assumed the role of Acting Director of NIAID. He has served as NIAID’s Principal Deputy Director since joining NIH in 2006 and has played a key role in research planning and implementation activities, including helping to prepare and support a strategic vision for NIAID, and contributing to the management of NIAID’s extensive portfolio of basic, clinical, and applied research and product development activities.