CIDD hero image CIDD hero image

Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics

CIDD embraces all scales and components of infectious disease biology. Our interdisciplinary approach, coupled with a dynamic viewpoint, provides insight into how to prevent or reduce infections.

Center Overview

CIDD encompasses expertise in such basic fields as ecology, evolution, mathematical biology and molecular biology as well as applied disciplines including epidemiology, drug development, and vector control. We have partnerships across the globe with academic institutions, health agencies, and industry leaders to help bring its science into translational practice. Trainees in CIDD benefit from developing scientifically in this rich collaborative research environment, informed and shaped by real world practice.

70+ Research Groups engaged globally in 40+ Countries representing 15 Academic Departments across 5 Colleges at Penn State

Why Choose CIDD?

Graduate Education

Our Teams

BlueSky Feed

Grad School FAQs

Events

News

Q&A: What factors influence likelihood and severity of Ebola outbreaks?

Since its first documentation in 1976 there have been over three dozen outbreaks of Ebola virus disease in Central and West Africa, the largest of which resulted in the death of over 11,000 people between 2013 and 2016. A severe and often fatal disease, Ebola causes fever, weakness and bleeding, and spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is infected. Researchers at Penn State recently published two papers that looked at factors that contribute to how these outbreaks begin and how severe they become.

College of Ag Sciences awards bridge funding for global research collaborations

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has awarded bridge funding to four faculty members to support research collaborations addressing soil fertility, public health, climate resilience and agricultural trade include two from the Center for Root and Rhizosphere Biology.

Unique bond identified as key to viral infection speed

Viruses are typically described as tiny, perfectly geometric shells that pack genetic material with mathematical precision, but new research led by scientists at Penn State revealed a deliberate imbalance in their shape that helps them infect their hosts.

News

Q&A: What factors influence likelihood and severity of Ebola outbreaks?

Since its first documentation in 1976 there have been over three dozen outbreaks of Ebola virus disease in Central and West Africa, the largest of which resulted in the death of over 11,000 people between 2013 and 2016. A severe and often fatal disease, Ebola causes fever, weakness and bleeding, and spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is infected. Researchers at Penn State recently published two papers that looked at factors that contribute to how these outbreaks begin and how severe they become.

College of Ag Sciences awards bridge funding for global research collaborations

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has awarded bridge funding to four faculty members to support research collaborations addressing soil fertility, public health, climate resilience and agricultural trade include two from the Center for Root and Rhizosphere Biology.

Unique bond identified as key to viral infection speed

Viruses are typically described as tiny, perfectly geometric shells that pack genetic material with mathematical precision, but new research led by scientists at Penn State revealed a deliberate imbalance in their shape that helps them infect their hosts.

Two College of Ag Sciences faculty earn spots on highly cited researchers list

Francisco Dini-Andreote and Andrew Patterson in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences are among the most highly cited researchers in 2025, according to the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science Group.

Events

Thursday Mar

19

CIDD Seminar with Dr. Megan Povelones
"Signaling mechanisms driving parasite attachment in insects"

Thursday Mar

26

CIDD Seminar with Danielle Tufts

Friday Apr

03

Virology@PSU Meeting–April 2026

Events

Thursday Mar

19


CIDD Seminar with Dr. Megan Povelones
"Signaling mechanisms driving parasite attachment in insects"

Thursday Mar

26


CIDD Seminar with Danielle Tufts

Friday Apr

03


Virology@PSU Meeting–April 2026

Thursday Apr

09


CIDD Seminar with Jie Zhu
"Decoding Plant Immunity at High Resolution"