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Michael Cappello, MD

Department Chair and Professor of Epidemiology (Microbial Diseases); Professor of Pediatrics (Infectious Disease) and Microbial Pathogenesis
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Additional Titles

Interim Director, Yale Institute for Global Health

Associate Director, MD-PhD Program

Contact Info

Pediatric Infectious Diseases

PO Box 208064

New Haven, CT 06520-8064

United States

About

Titles

Department Chair and Professor of Epidemiology (Microbial Diseases); Professor of Pediatrics (Infectious Disease) and Microbial Pathogenesis

Interim Director, Yale Institute for Global Health; Associate Director, MD-PhD Program

Biography

Michael Cappello MD is Professor and Chair of the Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases at the Yale School of Public Health, and Professor of Pediatrics and Microbial Pathogenesis at Yale Medical School. He graduated from Brown University with a degree in Biomedical Ethics and received his MD from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. After training in adult and Pediatric infectious diseases at Yale, Dr. Cappello joined the faculty in 1995, where he oversees a laboratory and field based research program focused on global health, tropical medicine and molecular parasitology. He is a 2007 recipient of the Bailey K. Ashford medal, awarded by the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene “for distinguished work in tropical medicine.” In addition to research, Dr. Cappello provides clinical care as an Infectious Diseases specialist at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital. He is co-founder of the Yale Partnerships for Global Health, an initiative that advances scientific knowledge, promotes international understanding, and builds human capacity through collaborative research and training. From 2007-15, Dr. Cappello directed the Yale World Fellows Program, a multi-disciplinary, campus-wide initiative whose mission is to cultivate and inspire a global network of leaders committed to positive change. From 2016-21, he chaired the Council on African Studies at the Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies and was faculty director of the Yale Africa Initiative. Dr. Cappello is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the Academic Advisory Council of Schwarzman Scholars Program at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

Appointments

Other Departments & Organizations

Education & Training

Infectious Diseases Fellow
Yale University School of Medicine (1995)
Intern & Resident
Georgetown University (1991)
MD
Georgetown University (1988)
BA
Brown University, Biomedical Ethics (1984)

Research

Overview

We conduct laboratory and field based investigations aimed at characterizing the epidemiology and molecular pathogenesis of parasitic diseases, specifically hookworm and malaria. We also study the pathogenesis of parasite coinfection and the role of host nutritional status in mediating susceptibility to disease. Our group utilizes molecular methods to identify parasite virulence factors, as well as define the genetic basis of treatment failure in endemic areas. Using laboratory models, we are developing novel drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics for parasitic diseases, with a goal of implementing new technologies for disease control in resource limited settings.

Our field-based research is focused on the epidemiology of hookworm and malaria in West Africa. In collaboration with the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research at the University of Ghana, we have defined the prevalence and intensity of hookworm/malaria in endemic communities, identified host factors that mediate susceptibility to infection, and also demonstrated high rates of deworming treatment failure. This work suggests the potential emergence of anthelminthic resistance, threatening the effectiveness of mass deworming campaigns in Africa. The long-range goal of our work is to improve the health of poor people around the world through laboratory and field based research on endemic infectious diseases.

In 2007 we launched the Yale Partnerships for Global Health, an initiative aimed at building human research capacity through education and training. Through this innovative program, students and post-doctoral fellows from Ghana, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, China, Singapore, and Australia have been hosted at Yale for mentored research training in clinical and translational research. The long range goal of the Yale Partnerships is to build a global network of scientists committed to improving health through collaborative research.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)

Africa, Western; Developing Countries; Ghana; Global Health; Hookworm Infections; Infectious Disease Medicine; Malaria; Microbiology; Pediatrics; Public Health; Tropical Medicine

Research at a Glance

Yale Co-Authors

Frequent collaborators of Michael Cappello's published research.

Publications

Featured Publications

2024

2023

2022

2021

Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

  • activity

    Schwarzman Scholars Program, Tsinghua University, Beijing

  • activity

    Frontiers in Tropical Diseases

  • honor

    Connecticut's Best Doctors

  • honor

    Francis Gilman Blake Award

  • activity

    Infection and Immunity

Clinical Care

Overview

Michael Cappello, MD, is a pediatric infectious diseases specialist and leads a global health research program focused on diseases that affect children who live in resource-limited places.

Dr. Cappello provides care to children in the Yale New Haven Health system of affiliated hospitals, handling a variety of infectious diseases, including conditions acquired through travel.

Dr. Cappello is also chair of the Department of the Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases at Yale School of Public Health. His research, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health, as well as private foundations and donors, is aimed at developing drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics for parasitic diseases, including hookworm and malaria.

He has more than 115 publications in journals such as PNAS, Journal of Infectious Diseases, PLoS NTDs, and the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Clinical Specialties

Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Fact Sheets

Board Certifications

  • Infectious Disease

    Certification Organization
    AB of Internal Medicine
    Latest Certification Date
    2016
    Original Certification Date
    2002

Yale Medicine News

Get In Touch

Contacts

Appointment Number
Office Fax Number
Clinic Fax Number
Mailing Addresses

Pediatric Infectious Diseases

PO Box 208064

New Haven, CT 06520-8064

United States

Yale School of Public Health

Laboratory of Epidemiology and Public Health, 60 College Street

New Haven, CT 06520

United States

Administrative Support

Locations

  • Patient Care Locations

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Events

Jan 202524Friday