An anonymous donor gifted $1 million to Tulane University to establish a fund to aid emerging research in infectious disease, the university announced Wednesday.
The university said the fund would help support research for COVID-19 involving testing, treatment and prevention, including vaccines.
The donor is a Tulane graduate and has supported the school's "mission to improve the human condition for decades," Tulane President Michael Fitts said.
“Fighting infectious disease has been a focus of Tulane since it was founded in 1834 to combat the yellow fever epidemic,” the donor said, according to a press release from the university. “My hope is that this gift will inspire others to support Tulane in this battle for the good of our country and our world.”
Tulane researchers from many scientific backgrounds have pivoted to studying coronavirus as the pandemic took hold.
The Tulane National Research Primate Center, home to several thousand monkeys and a 40,000-square foot lab, received coronavirus samples in February to study how the virus spreads and might be treated.
Other Tulane researchers are studying how to create decoys to trick and destroy coronavirus and how the measles vaccine might protect some of the sickest patients from the deadly immune system response the disease can trigger.
One Tulane researcher has started collecting wastewater samples to detect how prevalent COVID-19 is in the community, which could be especially useful in university settings if students return in the fall.
The funds will be used to supplement current research, study health disparities and better understand a disease that has at times overwhelmed the health care system in New Orleans.
“We will be able to analyze the genome of emerging infections in broader detail, so that we can simultaneously track the evolution of pathogens and identify weaknesses that can be used to develop vaccines or treatment strategies,” said Lee Hamm, senior vice president and dean of the Tulane School of Medicine. “These funds will both support our ongoing work and establish new lines of COVID-19 research for novel treatments and antivirals, vaccines, antibody testing, and give us a better understanding of the impact of health disparities."