Experts offer science and solutions as measles surge, school starts

As students head back to class, protecting community health relies on routine immunizations. This year, public health officials face an alarming hurdle, the U.S. is navigating its worst measles surge in decades.

To solve growing public health threats, Michigan State University researchers are tackling vaccine barriers from many angles, combining scientific innovation with frontline care to protect families. While lab researchers pioneer shelf-stable synthetic vaccine platforms and viral delivery systems to fight emerging diseases, clinicians urge parents to rely on verified scientific evidence.

However, technical innovation is only half the battle. To counter the digital landscape fueling public hesitancy, MSU communications, business and ethics experts are dissecting information “rabbit holes” created by social media influencers, wellness trends and AI algorithms. By pairing laboratory science with digital media analysis, MSU provides a complete bridge between breakthrough research and real-world public trust.

These MSU experts are available to discuss the challenges of elevating fact-based vaccine information and the varied implications of vaccine misinformation with respect to public health:

Vaccine development and emerging technologies

Xuefei Huang is an MSU Foundation Distinguished Professor and professor of biomedical engineering and chemistry with the colleges of Natural Science and Engineering. He is also chief of the Chemical Biology division of the Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering. His research focuses on biology, chemistry and engineering to develop next-generation tools for diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases. One particular focus is to design next-generation vaccines and immuno-therapeutics to combat emerging infections as well as cancer.
Contact: huangxu2@msu.edu

“Throughout human history, vaccines have saved millions of lives against many deadly infectious diseases. They prepare a person’s immune system before a disease strikes. Vaccination helps reduce the spread of diseases and protects those who are most vulnerable, including newborns, older adults and those with weakened immune systems, helping keep the community healthy. One focus for my group’s research is to develop next-generation vaccines and immuno-therapeutics to combat prevalent infections and diseases our society is facing.”

Andrea Amalfitano is the Osteopathic Heritage Foundation Endowed Chair in Osteopathic Medicine and a professor with the College of Osteopathic Medicine. He is a certified clinical geneticist with medical education in pediatrics, internal medicine and human genetics, as well as an internationally regarded researcher. His translational research focuses on the development of cutting-edge therapeutics, including gene transfer-based technologies to treat infectious diseases and cancer.

Contact: amalfit1@msu.edu

“Gene transfer technologies from the Amalfitano lab at MSU are currently being utilized in human clinical trials to treat a variety of solid tumors via a therapeutic vaccine approach. Ultimately, this approach would help patients by stimulating their immune systems to better detect and kill cancer cells, while providing physicians a safer and less toxic treatment option for their patients affected by a variety of cancer types.”

Vaccine safety, patient care, infectious disease

Peter Gulick is a professor of medicine at the College of Osteopathic Medicine. He is an expert in infectious diseases and has more than four decades of clinical experience pioneering HIV/AIDS and hepatitis care in Michigan. He leads regional viral disease clinics and directs National Institutes of Health–funded infectious disease research.

Contact: gulick@msu.edu

“Currently, we are dealing with a significant national issue of myth vs. fact when it comes to vaccines. With the recent changes in committee members, especially the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, we have seen a number of myths regarding vaccines that are totally unfounded by any national scientific evidence. Many national medical associations also discount these statements as being inaccurate and causing a definite health hazard for the nation. The results of these myths currently are showing up as outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases, such as measles, which was nonexistent for years. The incidence of measles in 2026 already is at the highest annual count since 1991 and will continue to grow unless corrected. This situation has and will be getting worse if not corrected by the facts. We have to get back to the facts that have had years of scientific studies to prove the credibility and usefulness of vaccines.”

Robert Root is a board-certified pediatrician, associate chief medical officer at MSU Health Care and assistant professor of pediatrics at the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Contact: rootrobe@msu.edu

“As a pediatrician, we see vaccines as the gold standard of preventative care for our patients and one of the most important ways we can keep our families and communities healthy. This is very evident right now as our country is currently in the midst of the largest outbreak of measles we have seen in 35 years with more cases so far this year than during all of last year.

“We understand that most people have had the fortune of not having to experience many of the diseases that vaccines protect against. It can be difficult to cut through all the information available online regarding vaccines. Decades of research and experience have continued to show that vaccines are very safe and effective and again remain one of the best ways we can keep our families and communities healthy.”

Vaccine misinformation, social media, AI

Mariah L. Wellman, assistant professor of advertising and public relations in the MSU College of Communication Arts and Sciences, studies social media influencers, wellness rhetoric and the growth of the wellness industry. Wellman is particularly interested in how popular users within digital wellness communities build authority with audiences, as well as the role of social media in the relationship between patients and their healthcare providers. She is a national expert who is frequently sought out for commentary on influencers and the Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, movement.

Contact: mwellman@msu.edu

“Social media influencers are common sources of misinformation and may spread misleading claims regarding vaccines. Take influencer medical advice with a grain of salt, especially if you see they are selling an alternative product or service. As influencers continue to build their perceived authority in the digital wellness space and refine their skills as information providers, it may become more difficult to spot inaccurate facts, so talk to your trusted medical provider about anything you see on social media before making a decision that could impact your — or your child’s — health.”

Anjana Susarla is the Omura-Saxena Professor in Responsible AI in the Eli Broad College of Business. Her research, which has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, digital platforms and health communication, with a particular focus on using AI to improve how people find, understand and engage with online health information.

Contact: asusarla@broad.msu.edu

“Algorithms on social media platforms are primed for engagement. Recommendation engines in these platforms create a rabbit-hole effect by pushing users who click on anti-vaccine messages toward more anti-vaccine content. Individuals and groups that spread medical misinformation are well organized to exploit the weaknesses of the engagement-driven ecosystems on social media platforms.

“We need independent audits, including tools that assess the quality of health information promoted through social media algorithms. These can establish how the social media platforms’ choices in curating news feeds and presenting content affect how people see health information. This requires a concerted effort between researchers, experts and individuals to create standards around the use of social media on health-related issues. Another thing we can do as users is look at sources of credible content: Do not trust an advisory that is not backed by scientific evidence.”

Vaccine hesitancy, ethics, public trust

Sean Valles is a professor and the director of the MSU College of Human Medicine’s Center for Bioethics and Social Justice. He is a philosopher of health specializing in the ethical and evidentiary complexities of how social contexts combine to create patterns of inequitable health disparities.

Contact: valles@msu.edu

“Hesitancy toward vaccines has surged, in part due to misinformation spread on social media and, sometimes, even spread by politicians or their appointees. Meanwhile, after measles was declared to be eliminated the U.S. in 2000, we have had more vaccine-preventable cases in the last 18 months than in the previous 25 years combined. With infectious disease hazards and misinformation swirling, people can turn to their regular primary care doctors as reliable sources of personalized advice. It is important to remember that doctors’ offices make little or no profit from providing vaccines, and when they offer them, it is as a service to their patients.”