Daniel Weinberger, PhD
Research & Publications
Biography
News
Research Summary
Our work focuses on identifying policy-relevant strategies to reduce the burden of vaccine-preventable respiratory diseases in the United States and globally. We do this by using a unique combination of cutting-edge quantitative analysis, experimental tools, and community-based sampling. This combination of approaches allows us to bring novel insights about how to maximize the impacts of public health interventions. Learn more about the work in the Weinberger Lab here.
Extensive Research Description
I focus on identifying policy-relevant strategies to reduce the burden of vaccine-preventable respiratory diseases by using a unique combination of cutting-edge quantitative analysis, experimental tools, and community-based sampling. I use this unique combination of tools to understand the impact of existing interventions and to guide the development of more effective approaches. My work has received international exposure at meetings of the WHO and PAHO, and I have provided technical consultations based on my work to the CDC, WHO, GAVI The Vaccine Alliance, and numerous vaccine manufacturers (Pfizer, Merck, GSK, Affinivax, Matrivax). The lab has been supported by a diverse grant portfolio that includes funding from the NIH, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Pfizer, Merck, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Connecticut Emerging Infection Program. My work has focused largely on understanding the impacts of vaccines (against pneumococcus HPV, RSV), on developing improved vaccination strategies for children and adults, and on developing novel quantitative methods to evaluate the impact of public health interventions. This research employs a variety of methods including statistical and dynamic modeling, experimental microbiology, and bioinformatics. More recently, we have started performing field studies to understand the transmission dynamics of respiratory pathogens among adults in the US.
Coauthors
Research Interests
Americas; Bacterial Infections; Biology; Carrier State; Communicable Disease Control; Denmark; Epidemiologic Methods; Europe; Fourier Analysis; Iceland; Influenza, Human; Netherlands; Population Characteristics; Public Health; Respiratory Tract Infections; Streptococcus pneumoniae; Biostatistics; Diseases
Public Health Interests
Aging; Emerging Infectious Diseases; Genetics, Genomics, Epigenetics; Global Health; Infectious Diseases; Influenza; Maternal & Child Health; Microbial Ecology; Modeling; Respiratory Disease/Infections; Child/Adolescent Health; COVID-19
Selected Publications
- Vaccination with BNT162b2 reduces transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to household contacts in IsraelPrunas O, Warren JL, Crawford FW, Gazit S, Patalon T, Weinberger DM, Pitzer VE. Vaccination with BNT162b2 reduces transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to household contacts in Israel Science 2022, 375: 1151-1154. PMID: 35084937, PMCID: PMC9261115, DOI: 10.1126/science.abl4292.
- Estimation of Excess Deaths Associated With the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States, March to May 2020Weinberger DM, Chen J, Cohen T, Crawford FW, Mostashari F, Olson D, Pitzer VE, Reich NG, Russi M, Simonsen L, Watkins A, Viboud C. Estimation of Excess Deaths Associated With the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States, March to May 2020 JAMA Internal Medicine 2020, 180: 1336-1344. PMID: 32609310, PMCID: PMC7330834, DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.3391.
- Community factors associated with local epidemic timing of respiratory syncytial virus: A spatiotemporal modeling studyZheng Z, Pitzer VE, Warren JL, Weinberger DM. Community factors associated with local epidemic timing of respiratory syncytial virus: A spatiotemporal modeling study Science Advances 2021, 7: eabd6421. PMID: 34162556, PMCID: PMC8221622, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abd6421.
- Declines in pneumonia mortality following the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in Latin American and Caribbean countriesde Oliveira LH, Shioda K, Valenzuela M, Janusz CB, Rearte A, Sbarra AN, Warren JL, Toscano CM, Weinberger DM. Declines in pneumonia mortality following the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in Latin American and Caribbean countries Clinical Infectious Diseases 2020, 73: ciaa614-. PMID: 32448889, PMCID: PMC8516507, DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciaa614.
- Association Between the Decline in Pneumococcal Disease in Unimmunized Adults and Vaccine-Derived Protection Against Colonization in Toddlers and Preschool-Aged ChildrenWeinberger DM, Pitzer VE, Regev-Yochay G, Givon-Lavi N, Dagan R. Association Between the Decline in Pneumococcal Disease in Unimmunized Adults and Vaccine-Derived Protection Against Colonization in Toddlers and Preschool-Aged Children American Journal Of Epidemiology 2018, 188: 160-168. PMID: 30462150, PMCID: PMC6321804, DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwy219.
- The COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity for unravelling the causative association between respiratory viruses and pneumococcus-associated disease in young children: a prospective studyDagan R, van der Beek B, Ben-Shimol S, Greenberg D, Shemer-Avni Y, Weinberger D, Danino D. The COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity for unravelling the causative association between respiratory viruses and pneumococcus-associated disease in young children: a prospective study EBioMedicine 2023, 90: 104493. PMID: 36857965, PMCID: PMC9970381, DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104493.
- Direct and indirect mortality impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, March 1, 2020 to January 1, 2022Lee W, Park S, Weinberger D, Olson D, Simonsen L, Grenfell B, Viboud C. Direct and indirect mortality impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, March 1, 2020 to January 1, 2022 ELife 2023, 12: e77562. PMID: 36811598, PMCID: PMC9946455, DOI: 10.7554/elife.77562.
- Magnetic bead-based separation of pneumococcal serotypesYork A, Huynh E, Mbodj S, Yolda-Carr D, Hislop M, Echlin H, Rosch J, Weinberger D, Wyllie A. Magnetic bead-based separation of pneumococcal serotypes Cell Reports Methods 2023, 3: 100410. PMID: 36936076, PMCID: PMC10014298, DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100410.
- Magnetic bead-based separation of pneumococcal serotypesYork A, Huynh E, Mbodj S, Yolda-Carr D, Hislop M, Echlin H, Rosch J, Weinberger D, Wyllie A. Magnetic bead-based separation of pneumococcal serotypes Cell Reports Methods 2023, 3: 100410. DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100410.
- 2205. Potential Causative Association between Respiratory Viruses and Pneumococcus-Associated Disease in Young Children in Israel: Lessons from the COVID-19 PandemicDagan R, van der Beek B, Greenberg D, Avni Y, Ben-Shimol S, Weinberger D. 2205. Potential Causative Association between Respiratory Viruses and Pneumococcus-Associated Disease in Young Children in Israel: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2022, 9: ofac492.1824. PMCID: PMC9752790, DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofac492.1824.
- Waning Effectiveness of the BNT162b2 Vaccine Against Infection in Adolescents in Israel.Prunas O, Weinberger D, Pitzer V, Gazit S, Patalon T. Waning Effectiveness of the BNT162b2 Vaccine Against Infection in Adolescents in Israel. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2022, 76: 113-118. PMID: 36484301, DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciac315.
- Impact of Temporary Storage Conditions on the Viability of Streptococcus pneumoniae in SalivaAllicock O, York A, Waghela P, Yolda-Carr D, Weinberger D, Wyllie A. Impact of Temporary Storage Conditions on the Viability of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Saliva MSphere 2022, 7: e00331-22. PMID: 36409104, PMCID: PMC9769876, DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00331-22.
- Predicting vaccine effectiveness against invasive pneumococcal disease in children using immunogenicity dataRyman J, Weaver J, Hu T, Weinberger D, Yee K, Sachs J. Predicting vaccine effectiveness against invasive pneumococcal disease in children using immunogenicity data Npj Vaccines 2022, 7: 140. PMID: 36344529, PMCID: PMC9640717, DOI: 10.1038/s41541-022-00538-1.
- Detection of pneumococcus during hospitalization for SARS-CoV-2Stahlfeld A, Glick L, Ott I, Craft S, Yolda-Carr D, Harden C, Nakahata M, Farhadian S, Grant L, Alexander-Parrish R, Arguedas A, Gessner B, Weinberger D, Wyllie A. Detection of pneumococcus during hospitalization for SARS-CoV-2 FEMS Microbes 2022, 3 DOI: 10.1093/femsmc/xtac026.
- Saliva as an alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs for detection of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in childrenLangedijk A, Allicock O, Van Wijk M, Yolda-Carr D, Weinberger D, Wyllie A, Bont L. Saliva as an alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs for detection of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in children 2022, 4519. DOI: 10.1183/13993003.congress-2022.4519.
- Odds of Testing Positive for SARS-CoV-2 Following Receipt of 3 vs 2 Doses of the BNT162b2 mRNA VaccinePatalon T, Gazit S, Pitzer VE, Prunas O, Warren JL, Weinberger DM. Odds of Testing Positive for SARS-CoV-2 Following Receipt of 3 vs 2 Doses of the BNT162b2 mRNA Vaccine JAMA Internal Medicine 2022, 182: 179-184. PMID: 34846533, PMCID: PMC8634151, DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2021.7382.
- Decline in Pneumococcal Disease in Young Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel Associated with Suppression of seasonal Respiratory Viruses, despite Persistent Pneumococcal Carriage: A Prospective Cohort StudyDanino D, Ben-Shimol S, Van Der Beek BA, Givon-Lavi N, Avni YS, Greenberg D, Weinberger DM, Dagan R. Decline in Pneumococcal Disease in Young Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel Associated with Suppression of seasonal Respiratory Viruses, despite Persistent Pneumococcal Carriage: A Prospective Cohort Study Clinical Infectious Diseases 2021, 75: ciab1014. PMID: 34904635, PMCID: PMC8754767, DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciab1014.
- 301. Detection of Pneumococcal Pneumonia During SARS-CoV-2 InfectionWatkins A, Yolda-Carr D, Ott I, Nakahata M, Moore A, Muenker M, Tokuyama M, Vogels C, Campbell M, Datta R, Cruz C, Farhadian S, Iwasaki A, Ko A, Grubaugh N, Alexander-Parrish R, Arguedas A, Gessner B, Weinberger D, Wyllie A. 301. Detection of Pneumococcal Pneumonia During SARS-CoV-2 Infection Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2021, 8: s257-s257. PMCID: PMC8644655, DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofab466.503.
- 1321. Acquisition and Transmission of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Individuals Over the Age of 60 Years Residing in New Haven, CT, USAWyllie A, Mbodj S, Yolda-Carr D, Thammavongsa D, Waghela P, Nakahata M, Vega N, York A, Allicock O, Alexander-Parrish R, Arguedas A, Gessner B, Weinberger D, Hislop M. 1321. Acquisition and Transmission of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Individuals Over the Age of 60 Years Residing in New Haven, CT, USA Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2021, 8: s749-s749. PMCID: PMC8689704, DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofab466.1513.
- Estimation of the Timing and Intensity of Reemergence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Following the COVID-19 Pandemic in the USZheng Z, Pitzer VE, Shapiro ED, Bont LJ, Weinberger DM. Estimation of the Timing and Intensity of Reemergence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Following the COVID-19 Pandemic in the US JAMA Network Open 2021, 4: e2141779. PMID: 34913973, PMCID: PMC8678706, DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.41779.
- Abstract P91: Excess Cerebrovascular Mortality in the U.S. During the Covid-19 PandemicSharma R, Kuohn L, Weinberger D, Warren J, Sansing L, Jasne A, Falcone G, Dhand A, Sheth K. Abstract P91: Excess Cerebrovascular Mortality in the U.S. During the Covid-19 Pandemic Stroke 2021, 52 DOI: 10.1161/str.52.suppl_1.p91.
- Real-time monitoring of the rollout of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in rural India using a digital tracking platformNagar R, Ambiya M, Dalal S, Bhadauriya P, Abdullah H, Shahnawaz M, Weinberger D. Real-time monitoring of the rollout of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in rural India using a digital tracking platform Gates Open Research 2021, 5: 16. DOI: 10.12688/gatesopenres.13206.1.
- Estimating the power to detect a change caused by a vaccine from time series dataWeinberger D, Warren J. Estimating the power to detect a change caused by a vaccine from time series data Gates Open Research 2020, 4: 27. DOI: 10.12688/gatesopenres.13116.1.
- GOOGLE SEARCHES ACCURATELY FORECAST RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS HOSPITALIZATIONSAlthouse B, Weinberger D, Scarpino S, Pitzer V, Ayers J, Wenger E, Fung I, Dredze M, Hu H. GOOGLE SEARCHES ACCURATELY FORECAST RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS HOSPITALIZATIONS CHEST Journal 2019, 155: 65a. DOI: 10.1016/j.chest.2019.02.077.
- Transmission Dynamics of Respiratory Viruses in a Congregated Military Population: Prospective Cohort StudyLewnard J, Chen W, Milzman J, Grigorenko E, Robinson S, Jones C, Moreno N, Malone L, Weinberger D, Burgess T, Coles C. Transmission Dynamics of Respiratory Viruses in a Congregated Military Population: Prospective Cohort Study Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2017, 4: s238-s238. PMCID: PMC7107105, DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofx163.503.
- Association Between Local Pediatric Vaccination Rates and Patterns of Pneumococcal Disease in AdultsPingali SC, Warren JL, Mead AM, Sharova N, Petit S, Weinberger DM. Association Between Local Pediatric Vaccination Rates and Patterns of Pneumococcal Disease in Adults The Journal Of Infectious Diseases 2015, 213: 509-515. PMID: 26310307, PMCID: PMC4721904, DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiv431.
- Vaccine against Pneumococcal Pneumonia in Adults.Weinberger DM, Bruhn CA, Shapiro ED. Vaccine against Pneumococcal Pneumonia in Adults. New England Journal Of Medicine 2015, 373: 92. PMID: 26132955, DOI: 10.1056/nejmc1505366.
- Association between Respiratory Syncytial Virus Activity and Pneumococcal Disease in Infants: A Time Series Analysis of US Hospitalization DataWeinberger DM, Klugman KP, Steiner CA, Simonsen L, Viboud C. Association between Respiratory Syncytial Virus Activity and Pneumococcal Disease in Infants: A Time Series Analysis of US Hospitalization Data PLOS Medicine 2015, 12: e1001776. PMID: 25562317, PMCID: PMC4285401, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001776.
- 654Local persistence of vaccine-targeted pneumococcal serotypes as causes of disease in adultsWeinberger D, Sharova N, Petit S. 654Local persistence of vaccine-targeted pneumococcal serotypes as causes of disease in adults Open Forum Infectious Diseases 2014, 1: s183-s183. DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofu052.362.
- Using Pneumococcal Carriage Data to Monitor Postvaccination Changes in Invasive DiseaseWeinberger DM, Bruden DT, Grant LR, Lipsitch M, O'Brien KL, Pelton SI, Sanders EA, Feikin DR. Using Pneumococcal Carriage Data to Monitor Postvaccination Changes in Invasive Disease American Journal Of Epidemiology 2013, 178: 1488-1495. PMID: 24013204, PMCID: PMC3813314, DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwt156.
- Serotype replacement after pneumococcal vaccination – Authors' replyWeinberger D, Malley R, Lipsitch M. Serotype replacement after pneumococcal vaccination – Authors' reply The Lancet 2012, 379: 1388-1389. DOI: 10.1016/s0140-6736(12)60591-1.
- Impact of the 2009 Influenza Pandemic on Pneumococcal Pneumonia Hospitalizations in the United StatesWeinberger DM, Simonsen L, Jordan R, Steiner C, Miller M, Viboud C. Impact of the 2009 Influenza Pandemic on Pneumococcal Pneumonia Hospitalizations in the United States The Journal Of Infectious Diseases 2011, 205: 458-465. PMID: 22158564, PMCID: PMC3276240, DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jir749.
- S128 Highly invasive capsular serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae bind high levels of Factor H and are resistant to complement and phagocytosisHyams C, Trzcinski K, Weinberger D, Lipsitch M, Brown J. S128 Highly invasive capsular serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae bind high levels of Factor H and are resistant to complement and phagocytosis Thorax 2011, 66: a59. DOI: 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2011-201054b.128.
- Serotype replacement in disease after pneumococcal vaccinationWeinberger DM, Malley R, Lipsitch M. Serotype replacement in disease after pneumococcal vaccination The Lancet 2011, 378: 1962-1973. PMID: 21492929, PMCID: PMC3256741, DOI: 10.1016/s0140-6736(10)62225-8.
- Association of Serotype with Risk of Death Due to Pneumococcal Pneumonia: A Meta-AnalysisWeinberger DM, Harboe ZB, Sanders EA, Ndiritu M, Klugman KP, Rückinger S, Dagan R, Adegbola R, Cutts F, Johnson HL, O'Brien KL, Scott JA, Lipsitch M. Association of Serotype with Risk of Death Due to Pneumococcal Pneumonia: A Meta-Analysis Clinical Infectious Diseases 2010, 51: 692-699. PMID: 20715907, PMCID: PMC2927802, DOI: 10.1086/655828.
- Pneumococcal Capsular Polysaccharide Structure Predicts Serotype PrevalenceWeinberger DM, Trzciński K, Lu YJ, Bogaert D, Brandes A, Galagan J, Anderson PW, Malley R, Lipsitch M. Pneumococcal Capsular Polysaccharide Structure Predicts Serotype Prevalence PLOS Pathogens 2009, 5: e1000476. PMID: 19521509, PMCID: PMC2689349, DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1000476.