UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. – As the ever-growing number of Covid variants has made clear to the global public in recent years, disease-causing viruses can evolve incredibly fast. The same holds true for bacteria that cause many infectious diseases. Modern medical science continually grapples with this reality, striving to invent and adapt treatments capable of outpacing the adaptive changes of these pathogens.
“Most of the things we do in medicine targeted at these living organisms will kill them. And so, there's very, very strong selection for those organisms to overcome these treatments,” said Andrew Read, Evan Pugh professor of biology and entomology and senior vice president of Research at Penn State. “And so, one of the strongest driving pressures for the evolution of many of these pathogens is in fact the medical treatments that we throw at them.”
Read was interviewed about his long and celebrated career as a prominent researcher in this field by Penn State forensic science undergrad Emma Sieminski for the latest episode of the Tracking Traits podcast.
“The question that I got really interested in was, were any medical procedures selecting for more virulent strains or less virulent strains? And I got very interested in whether drugs could do that,” said Read. “And vaccines are aimed at preventing the transmission of viruses. And so, the real question there was whether or not you could have some circumstances where vaccines might select for more or less virulent strains.”
In Read’s podcast conversation with Sieminski, titled, “The Evolution of Infectious Diseases,” he recounted the story of his early interest in biology as a career, and how that led to his enduring focus on the evolution of pathogens. He also reflected on insights gained from critical moments in his career, shared advice for students entering the field of science, and commented on the impact of COVID-19 on evolutionary biology and related fields. Finally, Read expounded on the benefits of interdisciplinary research and the quest to design of evolution-proof drugs and vaccines.
Sieminski also questioned Read about his unexpected run in with podcaster Joe Rogan, who briefly cited one of Read’s papers in the middle of a 2021 episode and drew some dubious conclusions about it in regards to Covid vaccinations.
“The paper absolutely skyrocketed to popularity in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic,” noted Sieminski. “And it's actually been discussed in a YouTube video that has received 3.2 million views.”
That research paper, titled “Imperfect Vaccination Can Enhance the Transmission of Highly Virulent Pathogens,” was published in PLOS Biology in 2015. Because of the controversy stirred up by Rogan’s remarks, it has become the most viewed paper in Penn State history.
“In the cold light of dawn, actually Joe Rogan did a pretty good job of summarizing our paper and the science in it,” Read explained. “The bit that I really disagreed with and the bit that caused all the controversy, was the extension that from evolution of a virus in chickens, one should then choose not to vaccinate against COVID. And that is a hell of a step. And weirdly, if you think about it, you are asking that for some hypothetical evolutionary possibility about the future, which is played out in the chicken virus, but not very many other places, you should therefore not take lifesaving vaccines. And that's just such a radical conclusion.”
“The Evolution of Infectious Diseases” is available on all major podcast platforms. The Tracking Traits podcast is a production of the Center for Human Evolution and Diversity, and features Penn State undergrads interviewing researchers about their work and personal passions.
The Center for Human Evolution and Diversity is housed within the Department of Anthropology in the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts, with support from the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences.