Published: 01/26/2026

By Catherine Wu, Global Health Communications Assistant

Jan. 30 is World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day, which is dedicated to raising awareness about NTDs. NTDs are a group of infections (e.g. Chagas, leprosy, dengue, schistosomiasis) affecting more than one billion people worldwide. They disproportionately impact impoverished and isolated populations — particularly those living in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America. According to WHO, as of early 2026, 58 countries have eliminated at least one NTD, demonstrating progress toward the WHO’s target of 100 countries reaching elimination by 2030.

In recognition of this day, we are excited to highlight Dr. Nathan Lo, Assistant Professor of Infectious Diseases and CIGH Faculty Fellow, and his efforts to eradicate neglected tropical diseases. Lo has contributed research and policy that have shaped new WHO guidelines to reduce the disease burden of schistosomiasis and strongyloidiasis. 

Lo’s most recent publication offers guidance on the development of new drugs for schistosomiasis — a parasitic disease affecting over 240 million people — and public health efforts to control and eliminate the disease. Lo’s team compared Praziquantel, the standard treatment, with hypothetical new drugs that more effectively targeted the parasitic worms at various stages of development to guide drug development. Using modeling, they found that drugs that better targeted both adult and juvenile parasites could help make gains against the disease in high-burden settings, while drugs that target adult parasites are likely to have a more immediate impact on disease control. Drugs that targeted juvenile parasites, meanwhile, could moderately improve longer-term control outcomes.

The Stanford Center for Innovation in Global Health is supporting Lo’s ongoing research into these diseases through two Global Health Seed Grants for which he is a co-PI:

Lo also studies the epidemiology of vaccine-preventable diseases in the United States. 

Read more about Dr. Lo’s infectious disease research in these publications:

  1. Population-level impact of mass drug administration against schistosomiasis with anthelmintic drugs targeting juvenile schistosomes: a modelling study [Lancet Microbe]
  2. Development of prediction models to identify hotspots of schistosomiasis in endemic regions to guide mass drug administration [Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences]
  3. Modeling Reemergence of Vaccine-Eliminated Infectious Diseases Under Declining Vaccination in the US [JAMA]