Katharine Collins
@malaria-kat.bsky.social
Senior Program Officer - Global Health R&D @coeff_giving (previously openphil) | views my own. Malaria researcher | vaccine developer | R21 inventor
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Some news: Open Philanthropy is now Coefficient Giving! Our mission is unchanged but the new name reflects our growing work with other donors to multiply the impact of their giving.
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
November 18, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Some news: Open Philanthropy is now Coefficient Giving! Our mission is unchanged but the new name reflects our growing work with other donors to multiply the impact of their giving.
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
🧵 on our work to make philanthropy a more efficient "market" and plans going forward:
Reposted by Katharine Collins
More on our big news today:
bsky.app/profile/alb...
bsky.app/profile/alb...
November 18, 2025 at 4:17 PM
More on our big news today:
bsky.app/profile/alb...
bsky.app/profile/alb...
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Hiring a PO to help us give away tens of millions more in vaccine R&D over the coming years, in particular to make progress on strep A. Kills 600k/y but should be fixable with creativity...
Looking for an experienced scientist, but not necessarily in strep A:
jobs.ashbyhq.com/openphilanth...
Looking for an experienced scientist, but not necessarily in strep A:
jobs.ashbyhq.com/openphilanth...
Program Officer, Science and Global Health R&D
Open Philanthropy is seeking a Program Officer to execute, expand, and refine our existing grantmaking strategies in Global Health R&D.
jobs.ashbyhq.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:12 AM
Hiring a PO to help us give away tens of millions more in vaccine R&D over the coming years, in particular to make progress on strep A. Kills 600k/y but should be fixable with creativity...
Looking for an experienced scientist, but not necessarily in strep A:
jobs.ashbyhq.com/openphilanth...
Looking for an experienced scientist, but not necessarily in strep A:
jobs.ashbyhq.com/openphilanth...
Reposted by Katharine Collins
🚨 Hiring scientists to help give away money 🚨
At Open Philanthropy, we have given away $600M in biomedical research since 2016. Now, we're expanding the team to do more.
We're hiring:
* Up to 3 Senior Program Associates
* Program Officer in strep A
Remote OK, salaries in links! (Thread below)
At Open Philanthropy, we have given away $600M in biomedical research since 2016. Now, we're expanding the team to do more.
We're hiring:
* Up to 3 Senior Program Associates
* Program Officer in strep A
Remote OK, salaries in links! (Thread below)
Hiring scientists to give away money
At Open Philanthropy, we have given away $600 million in biomedical research since 2016. That funding has supported the work of thousands of scientists across hundreds of universities, nonprofits, and...
blog.jacobtrefethen.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:11 AM
🚨 Hiring scientists to help give away money 🚨
At Open Philanthropy, we have given away $600M in biomedical research since 2016. Now, we're expanding the team to do more.
We're hiring:
* Up to 3 Senior Program Associates
* Program Officer in strep A
Remote OK, salaries in links! (Thread below)
At Open Philanthropy, we have given away $600M in biomedical research since 2016. Now, we're expanding the team to do more.
We're hiring:
* Up to 3 Senior Program Associates
* Program Officer in strep A
Remote OK, salaries in links! (Thread below)
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Our most practical episode yet for people who want to dabble in biotech
As of 2022, you can hallucinate protein structures using AI similar to Midjourney (RFDiffusion) -> create amino acid strings for them (ProteinMPNN) -> validate with AlphaFold
Biology becomes engineering…
As of 2022, you can hallucinate protein structures using AI similar to Midjourney (RFDiffusion) -> create amino acid strings for them (ProteinMPNN) -> validate with AlphaFold
Biology becomes engineering…
New episode of Hard Drugs!
What if you could design a protein never seen in nature?
Scientists are using new AI tools like RFDiffusion, AlphaFold & ProteinMPNN to hallucinate novel proteins to solve problems nature hasn't.
@jacobtref.bsky.social & I talk about the art of protein design 🧑🎨
What if you could design a protein never seen in nature?
Scientists are using new AI tools like RFDiffusion, AlphaFold & ProteinMPNN to hallucinate novel proteins to solve problems nature hasn't.
@jacobtref.bsky.social & I talk about the art of protein design 🧑🎨
The art of protein design with AI
YouTube video by Works in Progress
www.youtube.com
October 15, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Our most practical episode yet for people who want to dabble in biotech
As of 2022, you can hallucinate protein structures using AI similar to Midjourney (RFDiffusion) -> create amino acid strings for them (ProteinMPNN) -> validate with AlphaFold
Biology becomes engineering…
As of 2022, you can hallucinate protein structures using AI similar to Midjourney (RFDiffusion) -> create amino acid strings for them (ProteinMPNN) -> validate with AlphaFold
Biology becomes engineering…
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Hope for #Strep A #vaccine ...
| #Streptococcus | #StrepA | #bacteria | #infection | #immunity | By @sheffielduni.bsky.social via @sciencex.bsky.social
| #Streptococcus | #StrepA | #bacteria | #infection | #immunity | By @sheffielduni.bsky.social via @sciencex.bsky.social
Hope for Strep A vaccine: Scientists identify antibodies that protect children from infection
Scientists have discovered how some children develop natural immunity to a bacterial infection, a vital breakthrough which could help develop vaccines to save up to half a million lives globally each…
medicalxpress.com
August 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Hope for #Strep A #vaccine ...
| #Streptococcus | #StrepA | #bacteria | #infection | #immunity | By @sheffielduni.bsky.social via @sciencex.bsky.social
| #Streptococcus | #StrepA | #bacteria | #infection | #immunity | By @sheffielduni.bsky.social via @sciencex.bsky.social
Reposted by Katharine Collins
The nasal flu vaccine reduces the risk of strep A infections, a study in the UK suggests, contrary to the claims of antivaxxers:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nasal-flu-vaccine-may-help-reduce-cases-of-group-a-strep
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nasal-flu-vaccine-may-help-reduce-cases-of-group-a-strep
Nasal flu vaccine may help reduce cases of group A strep
Analysis by UKHSA suggests a nasal spray vaccine that off...
www.gov.uk
November 13, 2024 at 11:44 AM
The nasal flu vaccine reduces the risk of strep A infections, a study in the UK suggests, contrary to the claims of antivaxxers:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nasal-flu-vaccine-may-help-reduce-cases-of-group-a-strep
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nasal-flu-vaccine-may-help-reduce-cases-of-group-a-strep
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Over the weekend I published an essay series on a question I've been thinking about for a while:
What does AI progress mean for medical progress?
It starts with this 500 word piece. If you want more after that, there are 10,000 words of forking paths:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/ai-progress-...
What does AI progress mean for medical progress?
It starts with this 500 word piece. If you want more after that, there are 10,000 words of forking paths:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/ai-progress-...
What does AI progress mean for medical progress?
Rapid AI progress does not automatically mean rapid medical progress. If the point of AI progress is human flourishing, we must make other complementary investments too. Even with extremely powerful A...
blog.jacobtrefethen.com
August 5, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Over the weekend I published an essay series on a question I've been thinking about for a while:
What does AI progress mean for medical progress?
It starts with this 500 word piece. If you want more after that, there are 10,000 words of forking paths:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/ai-progress-...
What does AI progress mean for medical progress?
It starts with this 500 word piece. If you want more after that, there are 10,000 words of forking paths:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/ai-progress-...
Reposted by Katharine Collins
So excited to share what Saloni and I have been up to.
Medical innovation is not inevitable. Sometimes breakthroughs take 40 years, thousands of people building on each others’ work & participating in clinical trials.
Check out ep 1, and subscribe for more Hard Drugs! harddrugs.worksinprogress.co
Medical innovation is not inevitable. Sometimes breakthroughs take 40 years, thousands of people building on each others’ work & participating in clinical trials.
Check out ep 1, and subscribe for more Hard Drugs! harddrugs.worksinprogress.co
June 11, 2025 at 7:04 PM
So excited to share what Saloni and I have been up to.
Medical innovation is not inevitable. Sometimes breakthroughs take 40 years, thousands of people building on each others’ work & participating in clinical trials.
Check out ep 1, and subscribe for more Hard Drugs! harddrugs.worksinprogress.co
Medical innovation is not inevitable. Sometimes breakthroughs take 40 years, thousands of people building on each others’ work & participating in clinical trials.
Check out ep 1, and subscribe for more Hard Drugs! harddrugs.worksinprogress.co
Reposted by Katharine Collins
NEW EPISODE of HARD DRUGS!
“5 hours is too long!” some of you said after our first episode. So our second episode is 20 minutes 🤭
@jacobtref.bsky.social and I explore the world of proteins: how proteins fold into complex shapes, why complexity matters, how crowded and dynamic a cell really is.
“5 hours is too long!” some of you said after our first episode. So our second episode is 20 minutes 🤭
@jacobtref.bsky.social and I explore the world of proteins: how proteins fold into complex shapes, why complexity matters, how crowded and dynamic a cell really is.
Proteins: Weird blobs that do important things
open.spotify.com
September 3, 2025 at 4:20 PM
NEW EPISODE of HARD DRUGS!
“5 hours is too long!” some of you said after our first episode. So our second episode is 20 minutes 🤭
@jacobtref.bsky.social and I explore the world of proteins: how proteins fold into complex shapes, why complexity matters, how crowded and dynamic a cell really is.
“5 hours is too long!” some of you said after our first episode. So our second episode is 20 minutes 🤭
@jacobtref.bsky.social and I explore the world of proteins: how proteins fold into complex shapes, why complexity matters, how crowded and dynamic a cell really is.
Reposted by Katharine Collins
LAUNCH DAY 🚀
Today I’m launching a new podcast, Hard Drugs, with Jacob Trefethen (@jacobtref.bsky.social)
Our first episode is about lenacapavir — a new HIV drug that blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%, and which could completely change the fight against HIV worldwide.
Today I’m launching a new podcast, Hard Drugs, with Jacob Trefethen (@jacobtref.bsky.social)
Our first episode is about lenacapavir — a new HIV drug that blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%, and which could completely change the fight against HIV worldwide.
Lenacapavir: The miracle drug that could end AIDS
Hard Drugs · Episode
open.spotify.com
June 11, 2025 at 2:16 PM
LAUNCH DAY 🚀
Today I’m launching a new podcast, Hard Drugs, with Jacob Trefethen (@jacobtref.bsky.social)
Our first episode is about lenacapavir — a new HIV drug that blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%, and which could completely change the fight against HIV worldwide.
Today I’m launching a new podcast, Hard Drugs, with Jacob Trefethen (@jacobtref.bsky.social)
Our first episode is about lenacapavir — a new HIV drug that blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%, and which could completely change the fight against HIV worldwide.
Reposted by Katharine Collins
#Lenacapavir: The miracle drug that could end #AIDS. The new #HIV drug blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%. The "Hard Drugs" podcast w/ @scientificdiscovery.dev @jacobtref.bsky.social
open.spotify.com/episode/4nIj...
open.spotify.com/episode/4nIj...
Lenacapavir: The miracle drug that could end AIDS
Hard Drugs · Episode
open.spotify.com
June 16, 2025 at 5:36 PM
#Lenacapavir: The miracle drug that could end #AIDS. The new #HIV drug blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%. The "Hard Drugs" podcast w/ @scientificdiscovery.dev @jacobtref.bsky.social
open.spotify.com/episode/4nIj...
open.spotify.com/episode/4nIj...
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Dr A Beaton outlines translational research in Uganda turning screening evidence into a national program (ANUDU) for primary health screening and registry. She shows successful screening of 30k patients, and then of those confirmed 72% successful adherence to treatment w/ registry. #LISSSD25 #IDsky
June 2, 2025 at 12:24 AM
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Dr K Brown speaks about developing and validating an AI model for interpretation of non expert handheld parasternal images for DX of MR for RHD which had good sens (0.82) & spec (0.82) for LMIC setting. Also implementation study found it highly acceptable for staff & patients. #LISSSD25 #RHD
June 2, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Prof de Silva & Dr Keeley speak on Strep A epi & immunity in the Gambia.
🗝️ Hyperendemicity of Strep A
🗝️ Index infections not explained by household contacts
🗝️ Early life immunity develops <2 y/o
🗝️ Ab response to carriage & infection
🗝️ ?protective immunity from SLO, SpyAD, SpyCEP
#LISSSD25 #IDsky
🗝️ Hyperendemicity of Strep A
🗝️ Index infections not explained by household contacts
🗝️ Early life immunity develops <2 y/o
🗝️ Ab response to carriage & infection
🗝️ ?protective immunity from SLO, SpyAD, SpyCEP
#LISSSD25 #IDsky
June 2, 2025 at 3:50 AM
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Reposted by Katharine Collins
I said no more #LISSSD25 posts but forgot a major highlight!
Most sessions started w/ a patient lived experience video, and you can see them all @ lisssd2025.org/patient-stories
Looking after patients during thier illnesses is v. stressful so it's great to hear their experiences when recovered.
Most sessions started w/ a patient lived experience video, and you can see them all @ lisssd2025.org/patient-stories
Looking after patients during thier illnesses is v. stressful so it's great to hear their experiences when recovered.
Patient Stories — LISSSD 2025
www.lisssd2025.org
June 5, 2025 at 7:33 AM
I said no more #LISSSD25 posts but forgot a major highlight!
Most sessions started w/ a patient lived experience video, and you can see them all @ lisssd2025.org/patient-stories
Looking after patients during thier illnesses is v. stressful so it's great to hear their experiences when recovered.
Most sessions started w/ a patient lived experience video, and you can see them all @ lisssd2025.org/patient-stories
Looking after patients during thier illnesses is v. stressful so it's great to hear their experiences when recovered.
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Reposted by Katharine Collins
PhD cand. J Iwasaki talks about mechanism behind strep throat recurrence.
👅 ~15% strep throat relapse
👅 Relapse strains can persist in ⬆️ [pen]
👅 Intracellular persistence in strep intracell. comm. [SIC]
👅 SICs are L-switch'd to lack cell wall hence recur post Pen Rx
#LISSSD25 #clinmicro
👅 ~15% strep throat relapse
👅 Relapse strains can persist in ⬆️ [pen]
👅 Intracellular persistence in strep intracell. comm. [SIC]
👅 SICs are L-switch'd to lack cell wall hence recur post Pen Rx
#LISSSD25 #clinmicro
June 4, 2025 at 5:47 AM
PhD cand. J Iwasaki talks about mechanism behind strep throat recurrence.
👅 ~15% strep throat relapse
👅 Relapse strains can persist in ⬆️ [pen]
👅 Intracellular persistence in strep intracell. comm. [SIC]
👅 SICs are L-switch'd to lack cell wall hence recur post Pen Rx
#LISSSD25 #clinmicro
👅 ~15% strep throat relapse
👅 Relapse strains can persist in ⬆️ [pen]
👅 Intracellular persistence in strep intracell. comm. [SIC]
👅 SICs are L-switch'd to lack cell wall hence recur post Pen Rx
#LISSSD25 #clinmicro
Reposted by Katharine Collins
I wrote a new piece with Rafael Dib on prioritisation in science funding. How should a grantmaker aiming at health impact pick areas to fund, when science is so hard to predict?
We argue you can get pretty far, because today's spending is weird:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/vaccines/
We argue you can get pretty far, because today's spending is weird:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/vaccines/
A Quantitative Approach to Vaccine Funding
It is always easiest to insult your own work, so let me tell you what's wrong with the piece Rafael Dib and I just published on vaccine R&D.
Our analysis is driven by a practical question: how should...
blog.jacobtrefethen.com
May 29, 2025 at 11:36 PM
I wrote a new piece with Rafael Dib on prioritisation in science funding. How should a grantmaker aiming at health impact pick areas to fund, when science is so hard to predict?
We argue you can get pretty far, because today's spending is weird:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/vaccines/
We argue you can get pretty far, because today's spending is weird:
blog.jacobtrefethen.com/vaccines/
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Another AUROC: L Carlton presents a possible ARF biomarker id'd from a series of bead array exp using START cohort samples.
Most accurate candidate TRAFIP with AUROC 0.79 solo or upto 0.845 in combo w/ other biomarkers.
Coming to a revised-revised Jones criteria? #LISSSD25 #idsky
Most accurate candidate TRAFIP with AUROC 0.79 solo or upto 0.845 in combo w/ other biomarkers.
Coming to a revised-revised Jones criteria? #LISSSD25 #idsky
June 4, 2025 at 3:13 AM
Reposted by Katharine Collins
Enjoying the new GiveWell podcast so far. Two episodes in: givewell.transistor.fm
GiveWell Conversations
Welcome to GiveWell’s podcast sharing the latest updates on our work. Tune in for conversations with GiveWell staff members discussing current priorities of our Research team and recent developments i...
givewell.transistor.fm
April 10, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Enjoying the new GiveWell podcast so far. Two episodes in: givewell.transistor.fm
Reposted by Katharine Collins
New blog post going into @seqh2o.bsky.social and team’s inventions — which add the right amount of chlorine to disinfect water at places people collect it — and why we decided to support the work in 2020: www.openphilanthropy.org/research/how...
April 19, 2025 at 8:13 PM
New blog post going into @seqh2o.bsky.social and team’s inventions — which add the right amount of chlorine to disinfect water at places people collect it — and why we decided to support the work in 2020: www.openphilanthropy.org/research/how...