As an infectious disease doctor in the late 1980s, Jeanne Marrazzo had a bedside seat to the onslaught of the AIDS epidemic in the USA. Realizing early that treatments were needed to prevent the virus from spreading, she jumped on efforts to steward pre-exposure prophylaxis regimens (PrEP) to people at risk from HIV. Now, one year into her role as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), she has the even bigger task of maintaining a research engine and knowledge base that can ward off any and all infectious disease threats.

Interviewed by Asher Mullard

Questions and answers have been edited for length and clarity.