Kristian G. Andersen

Kristian G. Andersen

@kgandersen.bsky.social

Infectious diseases & genomics. Immunologist in (voluntary) exile. Minimal sarcasm. Fierce HOA (Hater of Acronyms). Personal account - opinions expressed are my own and not those of my employer.

17.1K followers239 following2.6K posts

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Andrew Rambaut (🐏🎀)
@arambaut.bsky.social

Replying to @arambaut.bsky.social

I would also add that if the Kenyan national lab hadn't sequenced the cases and made the genomes available publicly, this connection could not have been made in time to actually act on the information and potentially save other lives. The Nigerian labs have also shared their genome within hours.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Mark Histed
@markhisted.org

This week, NIH advisors rebuked RFK for harming #NIH and US science. Sheryl Gay Stolberg reported it. Then RFK posted calling her sources anonymous or corrupt. I'll say this hoping it does good: I'm an NIH scientist, I'm not anonymous, and RFK Jr is destroying NIH. More in attachment:

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Tweet from the Minister of Health of Nigeria on the recent travel-associated BVD case. Fantastic work from all countries and institutions involved - phylogeeks will know what the clustering means, but I'll let the relevant authorities report on that.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Melody Schreiber
@melodyschreiber.com

BREAKING: The hepatitis B vaccine trial in Guinea-Bissau "will not move forward," the lead researcher says. “The solution is clear here: Take the money and vaccinate as many kids as you can,” @pauloffit.bsky.social told me: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...

theguardian.comControversial US-backed vaccine trial in African newborns haltedHepatitis B study in Guinea-Bissau that was to be funded by CDC and that drew global backlash ‘will not move forward’

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Bloom lab
@jbloomlab.bsky.social

Replying to @jbloomlab.bsky.social

It’s known SARS-CoV-2 evolves to erode antibodies from prior infection/vaccination. We asked: has it also become inherently less recognized by human germline antibodies? As shown below, answer is yes. ~3-fold fewer naïve human B cells bind newer vs old viral variant RBDs.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

The epidemic of Ebola - the 2nd largest reported and likely to become the largest ever - caused by Bundibugyo virus, is continuing to expand. I’m in Nigeria presently and unless an international response kicks into place, the current trajectory will continue with (many) more countries affected.

Kai Kupferschmidt@kakape.bsky.social

Not a great sign, but a lot will depend on the details here. For instance, if the patient really came from Uganda and not DRC via Uganda that suggests there is spread in the country that is being missed. www.reuters.com/business/hea...

reuters.comNigeria confirms an Ebola case, health minister saysNigeria has confirmed one Ebola ​case in ​the capital Abuja after laboratory ⁠confirmation, Health Minister ​Muhammad Ali Pate ​said on Tuesday.
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Interesting episode. Not directly discussed, but the idea that we should (could..) “slow down” AI progress is insane, however, the idea we should not regulate it, even more so. It’s a question of the latter catching up to the former. Currently, it’s not. www.searchengine.show/one-man-coul...

searchengine.showOne man could slow down AI. He won’t. Why? — Search EngineJensen Huang is CEO of the most valuable company in human history, NVIDIA. He is arguably the one person who could slow down the AI race. But he’s made a massive bet that AI is safe.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Kelton Minor
@keltonminor.bsky.social

Together with other scientists I’m suing the 🇺🇸 US National Institutes of Health for violating our 1st Amendment rights & censoring our health science. I’m ready to shine a light on the darkest days. Buckle up, read on. This gets pretty wild… THREAD

ACLU@aclu.org

By terminating research grants like Kelton's to censor views it doesn’t like, the NIH is blocking scientists from work that would advance public health for all of us. We're pushing back. Tell Congress to demand the NIH restore the grants and stop its censorship campaign at aclu.org/nih_censorship_

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Kai Kupferschmidt
@kakape.bsky.social

Replying to @kakape.bsky.social

If you had told me a year ago there would be an Ebola outbreak of this scale and the world would take this little notice, I probably would not have believed you.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Peter Daszak
@peterdaszak.bsky.social

Peer-reviewed paper published this week reports a group of new SARS-related bat CoVs in Thailand, & demonstrates proof-of-concept you can get actionable public health data from wildlife sampling. 1/ 🧵 www.nature.com/articles/s42...

nature.comAssessment of the zoonotic spillover potential of SARS-CoV-2-related coronaviruses from Rhinolophus pusillus bats in Thailand - Communications BiologyThis study investigates the zoonotic potential of bat coronaviruses at a human-wildlife interface in Thailand. Molecular analyses identify a SARS-CoV-2-related strain capable of human ACE2 binding, wh...
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Not mentioned about this unethical study is "why Guinea-Bissau"? The trial is not to test efficacy - we already know it's effective - it's to test non-specific effects. There is *zero* grounds to do that in a country with high risk of HepB - if UoSD is hell-bent on doing a study, do it in Denmark.

Gregg Gonsalves@gregggonsalves.bsky.social

The Danish government and the EU should be looking into this and into Syddansk Universitet - University of Southern Denmark, which has condoned this so-called research. 1/ www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

theguardian.comControversial vaccine trial touted by RFK Jr gets go-ahead in Guinea-BissauRecommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine will be withheld from thousands of newborns by Danish researchers
View full thread
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

So to the question "why Guinea-Bissau"? There is no justification. Period. Why do the study in the first place? There's honestly no justification either, but if the University of Southern Denmark is so hell-bent on doing it, do it in Denmark.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

There is _no_ justification to do this “study” in Guinea-Bissau and despite the investigators stating that the trial was approved, that turns out not to be true. Another excellent article by @melodyschreiber.com www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...

theguardian.comGuinea-Bissau denies it has approved controversial vaccine trial in newbornsHealth minister says government ‘did not authorize’ Danish-led hepatitis B trial in babies backed by RFK Jr
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

I'm surprised this hasn't been covered in the international media because it 💯 should - and is a taste of what's to come re. AI and hacking. In a nutshell - millions of Danish social security numbers + personal data were stolen. All enabled by AI and vibe coding. politiken.dk/danmark/art1...

politiken.dkAngrebet på 8,7 millioner cpr-numre var skabt af kunstig intDen formodede hacker bag historisk datalæk har brugt ai til at ’vibecode’ det program, der stjal millioner af cpr-numre. Kunstig intelligens har skabt et kæmpe sikkerhedsproblem, mener eksperter.
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

This is the main thing that concerns me about AI - whether deployed by malicious actors, self-replicating AI swarms, or simple, good old, human stupidity. No, LLMs won't print you a bioweapon in the lab, but it sure is good at hacking anything and everything, making many people capable of doing so.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

In the Danish example - a country of ~6m - a vibe coded program made it easy for a hacker to steal millions of data assets. The hacker stopped there, but it's not hard to see how in future, next steps could including filling out e.g., credit card applications and other LLM-enabled dumbfuckery.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

This👇 is such a good example of how on top of her game Helen was. While she was keeping us all updated on Ebola, MERS, flu, and so many of all the other infectious diseases out there, she immediately grasped the gravity of the first warning sign of what we now remember as SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19.

Kristian G. Andersen@kgandersen.bsky.social

This is the worst news I have heard in a very long time - what a tragic loss. @helenbranswell.bsky.social was, unquestionably, _the_ best in the field and just a wonderful person. Condolences to her family and colleagues - she'll be sorely missed. www.statnews.com/2026/10/13/h...

statnews.comHelen Branswell, whose reporting on infectious diseases and public health drew acclaim, dies at 69Helen Branswell, STAT's infectious disease reporter who earned the respect of experts and public health officials with her accessible, prescient dispatches, has died at age 69.
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

I can't quite express how devastating a loss this is - Helen truly was the pulse of our entire field. Always on point, always knew the right experts to talk to, always reporting, and never _ever_ accepting any level of bullshit. Completely no nonsense.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

For those of us working in the ID field, more often than not, we would get our news on infectious disease events from Helen. Latest flu situation? Helen would be there to keep you updated. Ebola? Yup, that too - if it was relevant, she'd be there, always first, always informed, always insightful.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

This is the worst news I have heard in a very long time - what a tragic loss. @helenbranswell.bsky.social was, unquestionably, _the_ best in the field and just a wonderful person. Condolences to her family and colleagues - she'll be sorely missed. www.statnews.com/2026/10/13/h...

statnews.comHelen Branswell, whose reporting on infectious diseases and public health drew acclaim, dies at 69Helen Branswell, STAT's infectious disease reporter who earned the respect of experts and public health officials with her accessible, prescient dispatches, has died at age 69.
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

What amazes me about MAHA and the peptide (and so, so, many other "health") craze, is the fact that the FDA was created for a reason and that reason hasn't changed one bit since the dawn of modern medicine. Nor will that reason change, no matter the number of uninformed podcasters and "influencers".

Amy Maxmen, PhD@amymaxmen.bsky.social

"This wrecks some of our lives," Dylan told me about his experience w/the peptide BPC-157. He wasn't alone. There are entire chat rooms of people who say they've been harmed. Their voices are muffled in MAHA hype. My latest @kffhealthnews.org / @washingtonpost.com kffhealthnews.org/public-healt...

kffhealthnews.orgPeople Say These Peptides Hurt Them. Their Stories Are Muffled in MAHA’s Push for Medical Freedom. - KFF Health NewsPeople who have taken experimental peptides, such as BPC-157, complain of migraines, eye pain, fatigue, and more. Learning whether these popular but unproven drugs are to blame may become harder if Ro...
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Not mentioned about this unethical study is "why Guinea-Bissau"? The trial is not to test efficacy - we already know it's effective - it's to test non-specific effects. There is *zero* grounds to do that in a country with high risk of HepB - if UoSD is hell-bent on doing a study, do it in Denmark.

Gregg Gonsalves@gregggonsalves.bsky.social

The Danish government and the EU should be looking into this and into Syddansk Universitet - University of Southern Denmark, which has condoned this so-called research. 1/ www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

theguardian.comControversial vaccine trial touted by RFK Jr gets go-ahead in Guinea-BissauRecommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine will be withheld from thousands of newborns by Danish researchers
View full thread
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

In Denmark, that risk is much less (low prevalence +testing), so if one wanted to study "non-specific" vaccine effects - although justifying such a need, given already existing knowledge, is itself highly questionable - could be done there without additional risk.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Since the HepB vaccine is _not_ given routinely given in Denmark, such a study design would involve offering a randomized group the vaccine vs sham. Again, even such a study would be questionable - because we already know the vaccine is safe and effective - at least it would be better justified.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Not mentioned about this unethical study is "why Guinea-Bissau"? The trial is not to test efficacy - we already know it's effective - it's to test non-specific effects. There is *zero* grounds to do that in a country with high risk of HepB - if UoSD is hell-bent on doing a study, do it in Denmark.

Gregg Gonsalves@gregggonsalves.bsky.social

The Danish government and the EU should be looking into this and into Syddansk Universitet - University of Southern Denmark, which has condoned this so-called research. 1/ www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

theguardian.comControversial vaccine trial touted by RFK Jr gets go-ahead in Guinea-BissauRecommended dose of hepatitis B vaccine will be withheld from thousands of newborns by Danish researchers
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

In Guinea-Bissau, ~18% of the adult population has HepB, so newborns are at very high risk of getting infected - even with testing - with the only, highly effective, prevention being the vaccine itself. That means withholding vaccination for a subset via a lottery is deeply unethical. Full stop.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Onisillos
@onisillos.bsky.social

"Conflating this accident with Russian bioweapons research activities is not helpful because this was a public-health lab where this incident happened. The idea that all public-health labs are secretly working on bioweapons is just nonsense." www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.comPlague scare: what scientists know, and what Russia won’t sayUnverified rumours swirl around the death of a Siberian laboratory technician. Nature talks to a biosecurity specialist to unpack the fallout.

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Prof Gavin Yamey MD MPH
@gavinyamey.bsky.social

Holy shit FOUR members of the ethics committee in Denmark that gave the green light to allow the widely-condemned RFK Jr-funded trial to proceed in Guinea-Bissau have now resigned in protest This quote is 🔥 Great reporting by @melodyschreiber.com www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Prof Gavin Yamey MD MPH@gavinyamey.bsky.social

RFK Jr is funding a grotesquely unethical study on newborn babies in Guinea-Bissau; ethicists, pediatricians, clinical trial experts, & infectious disease experts are calling this horrific trial The New Tuskegee. It is unethical to withhold a life saving intervention from half of newborns FFS.

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Great study! 1️⃣ 686 sequences, ~13% of cases (‼️) 2️⃣ Evolutionary rate of 8.7×10-4 s/s/y (a little slow vs EBOV) 3️⃣ Doubling time: ~2 weeks 4️⃣ Timing: late February 2026 5️⃣ Slow start in in Mongbwalu, amplification in urban center(s) 6️⃣ No evidence of majority mutations linked to fitness increase 👏

Andrew Rambaut (🐏🎀)@arambaut.bsky.social

"Temporal and Phylodynamic analyses of the 2026 Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo" - www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...

medrxiv.orgTemporal and Phylodynamic analyses of the 2026 Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the CongoThe Democratic Republic of the Congo is experiencing a major outbreak of Ebola disease caused by Orthoebolavirus bundibugyoense (Bundibugyo virus), which was declared on May 15, 2026. To investigate t...
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Looking forward to it!

Keystone Symposia@keystonesymposia.bsky.social

⏰ Deadline extended to Oct 21! Watch the speaker highlights, then submit a short talk abstract or scholarship application for Global Virome in Health & Disease. Geneva, Feb 1–4, 2027. 🦠 Submit today: hubs.la/Q04xV_mY0 #KSGlobalVirome27

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Jemma Geoghegan
@jemmageoghegan.bsky.social

See you in Geneva!

Keystone Symposia@keystonesymposia.bsky.social

⏰ Deadline extended to Oct 21! Watch the speaker highlights, then submit a short talk abstract or scholarship application for Global Virome in Health & Disease. Geneva, Feb 1–4, 2027. 🦠 Submit today: hubs.la/Q04xV_mY0 #KSGlobalVirome27

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Richard Sever
@richardsever.bsky.social

"Jacobsen’s scenario is a poor map of biological risk...stacking worst-case assumptions about pathogen transmissibility, blurring the distinction between dual-use research and weaponization, and overstating what AI changes" thebulletin.org/2026/10/anni...

thebulletin.orgAnnie Jacobsen’s road from Siberia to Armageddon is paved with bad assumptionsFollowing recent reports of a death at a secretive Siberian disease research lab, author Annie Jacobsen has become a sought-after media interview. Some interviewers are now casting Jacobsen's new best...
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

"... “We’re not funding Kristian Andersen and that virologist crew,” the [HHS] official was quoted as saying [...] Science has confirmed that Andersen’s team applied for continued CREID funding but did not get a new award." Indeed. With a specific focus on Ebola, Hantaviruses, Mpox, and Lassa.

Greg Folkers@gregfolkers.bsky.social

ScienceInsider: NIH revives network to study emerging diseases—but its new restrictions baffle scientists By Jon Cohen @science.org @cohenjon.bsky.social bit.ly/3VXSGKR

bit.lyNIH revives network to study emerging diseases—but its new restrictions baffle scientistsBan on hunting for new viruses in wildlife is at odds with program’s mission, researchers say
View full thread
Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Further, the prior quote from HHS said ".. CREID money will go to people looking at infectious diseases in public health." Which, given the fact that technologies and tools we developed as part of CREID v1 are highly utilized by public health agencies, locally, nationally, and internationally, is 🤷‍♂️

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

Overall, though, I'm glad to see CREID (re)funded and hope that the centers - despite the shackles they have been put in - will be able to continue their impactful work. The new+old CREID centers all do great work across the spectrum of infectious disease research, so seeing them funded is great!

Kristian G. Andersen
@kgandersen.bsky.social

"... “We’re not funding Kristian Andersen and that virologist crew,” the [HHS] official was quoted as saying [...] Science has confirmed that Andersen’s team applied for continued CREID funding but did not get a new award." Indeed. With a specific focus on Ebola, Hantaviruses, Mpox, and Lassa.

Greg Folkers@gregfolkers.bsky.social

ScienceInsider: NIH revives network to study emerging diseases—but its new restrictions baffle scientists By Jon Cohen @science.org @cohenjon.bsky.social bit.ly/3VXSGKR

bit.lyNIH revives network to study emerging diseases—but its new restrictions baffle scientistsBan on hunting for new viruses in wildlife is at odds with program’s mission, researchers say

Kristian G. Andersen reposted

Alex Crits-Christoph
@acritschristoph.bsky.social

Maybe the only real lesson from the Russian PUE case has been that authoritative sources- medias, scientists, even the WHO itself- are overly uncritical of, and influenced by, misinformation and conspiratorial thinking. there is a need for more info hygiene and empirical skepticism in biosecurity.

Zach Hensel@zachhensel.bsky.social

The media was all over this at the press conference today. Jennifer Rigby @reuters.com asks about it at 22:50. @mvankerkhove.bsky.social reiterated that it was based on a single media source. Was it this false story from a tabloid?