2021 Sexual Medicine Research Award Announced

Congratulations to Assistant Professor of Medicine/Infectious Diseases Jai Marathe, MBBS, who has received a $50K Sexual Medicine Award for her project, “Use of monoclonal antibodies to prevent sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancies: role of complement in the female reproductive tract.”

Dr. Marathe’s research is focused on developing multi-purpose technology (MPT) that incorporates anti-HIV, anti-Herpes virus and anti-pregnancy antibodies in a vaginal film or ring, for use by women. To evaluate the safety and efficacy of this product, Dr. Marathe and her team will study the interaction of the antibodies with the cervico-vaginal secretions and the various proteins, including complement proteins, that form a part of the mucosal defense system. They will describe the normal concentrations of complement proteins and evaluate the changes that occur during the menstrual cycle and also when vaginal infection is present to further inform the design of vaginally applied MPT products.