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Lauren Ancel Meyers

  • Professor
  • Director, epiENGAGE Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics
  • Director, Center for Pandemic Decision Science
  • Integrative Biology
  • Statistics and Data Sciences
  • Interdisciplinary Life Sciences Graduate Programs
Profile image of Lauren Ancel Meyers
UTpandemics@austin.utexas.edu
NHB
3.134
epiENGAGE

Research

My interdisciplinary lab develops computational methods to anticipate and combat infectious disease outbreaks. We partner with policymakers, public health agencies, and healthcare systems to improve the detection, forecasting, and control of threats ranging from Ebola and Zika to influenza and COVID-19. Since 2023, I have led epiENGAGE, a CDC-funded Center for Outbreak Analytics and Disease Modeling that is helping to modernize the nation’s outbreak forecasting infrastructure.

As an educator, I seek to equip undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers with the quantitative tools and broad perspectives needed to address complex problems at the intersection of health, science, and society. I have also helped advance undergraduate education and data science across the UT campus. I founded UT’s Department of Statistics and Data Sciences and served as its inaugural chair, recruiting its first eight faculty members, establishing a doctoral program, and overseeing the development of dozens of new courses. In addition, I directed an NIH-funded training program in Big Data for Biomedicine, served on the executive committee of UT’s Faculty Council and on the University Budget Council, and chaired two university-wide strategic planning initiatives commissioned by UT presidents.

I earned my undergraduate degree in mathematics and philosophy from Harvard University and my Ph.D. in biological sciences from Stanford University. Before joining UT in 2003, I held an NSF postdoctoral fellowship that supported my training in complex-systems modeling at the Santa Fe Institute and epidemiological modeling at Emory University.

Beyond UT, I am an external faculty member at the Santa Fe Institute and an elected member of the Harvard University Board of Overseers. I also serve as president and co-founder of the Center for Advanced Preparedness and Threat Response Simulation (CAPTRS), a nonprofit that uses serious games to strengthen global preparedness.

Research Areas

  • AI for Health or Computational Science
  • Health Promotion or Disease Prevention
  • Statistics, Big Data or Machine Learning
  • Evolution
  • Infectious Disease, Immunology and Microbiology
  • Computational Medicine or Computational Science

Fields of Interest

  • Computational Biology
  • Applied and Computational Mathematics
  • Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Disease

Centers and Institutes

  • Center for Pandemic Decision Science
  • COVID-19 Modeling Consortium
  • John Ring LaMontagne Center for Infectious Disease

Education

  • NSF Postdoctoral Fellow, Emory University and Santa Fe Institute (2000-2002)
  • Ph.D., Stanford University (1996-2000)
  • B.A., Harvard University (1991-1996)

Publications

  • 2026

     

    2025

    • Bi K, Bandekar SR, Bouchnita A, Cramer A, Fox SJ, Borchering RK, Biggerstaff M, Meyers LA. Estimated impact of 2022–2023 influenza vaccines on annual hospital burden in the United States, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2025; 122 (46) e2505175122, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2505175122.
    • Gibson GC, Fox SJ, Javan E, Ptak SE, Ibrahim OM, Lachmann M, Meyers LA. Improving Outbreak Forecasts Through Model Augmentation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2025; 122 (43) e2508575122, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2508575122. 
    • Pasco R, Hayden FG, Meyers LA. Modeling Influenza Antiviral Strategies: Reducing Burden and Preventing Resistance. J Infect Dis. 2025 Oct 17;232:S299-S308. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiaf263. PMID: 41102614; PMCID: PMC12530949.
    • Loo SL, Jung S, Contamin L, et al. Scenario Projections of COVID-19 Burden in the US, 2024-2025. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(9):e2532469. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.32469
    • Bi K, Bandekar S, Bouchnita A, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. Annual Hospitalizations for COVID-19, Influenza, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus, United States, 2023–2024. Emerg Infect Dis. 2025;31(3):636-638. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid3103.240594

     

    2024

    • Mathis SM, Webber AE, León TM et al. Evaluation of FluSight influenza forecasting in the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons with a new target laboratory-confirmed influenza hospitalizations. Nat Commun 2024;15, 6289. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-50601-9 
    • de Rosa F, Escott M, Walkes D, Meyers LA. Transdisciplinarity in Serious Gaming Design for Improved Crisis Preparedness. Int J of Serious Games. 2024; Volume 11(4). 
    • Pasco R, Fox SJ, Lachmann M, Meyers LA. Effectiveness of interventions to reduce COVID-19 transmission in schools. Epidemics. 2024;47: 100762. doi:10.1016/j.epidem.2024.100762
    • Fox SJ, Kim M, Meyers LA, Reich NG, Ray EL. Optimizing Disease Outbreak Forecast Ensembles. Emerg Infect Dis. 2024;30(9):1967-1969. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid3009.240026
    • Du Z, Wang L, Bai Y, Liu Y, Lau EHY, Galvani AP, Krug RM, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. A retrospective cohort study of Paxlovid efficacy depending on treatment time in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Elife. 2024;13. doi:10.7554/eLife.89801
    • Betke BA, Gottdenker NL, Meyers LA, Becker DJ. Ecological and evolutionary characteristics of anthropogenic roosting ability in bats of the world. iScience. 2024;27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2024.110369 
    • Lipsitch M, Bassett MT, Brownstein JS, et al. Infectious disease surveillance needs for the United States: lessons from Covid-19. Front. Public Health 2024;12:1408193. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1408193
    • Jung S-M, Loo SL, Howerton E, Contamin L, Smith CP, Carcelén EC, et al. Potential impact of annual vaccination with reformulated COVID-19 vaccines: Lessons from the US COVID-19 scenario modeling hub. PLoS Med. 2024;21: e1004387. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1004387
    • Bouchnita A, Bi K, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. Projecting Omicron scenarios in the US while tracking population-level immunity. Epidemics 2024;46:100746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epidem.2024.100746.
    • Bai Y, Du Z, Wang L, Lau E, Fung I, Holme P, Cowling BJ, Galvani AP, Krug RM, Meyers LA. Public Health Impact of Paxlovid as Treatment for COVID-19, United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 2024;30(2):262-269. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid3002.230835.
    • Egbelowo OF, Fox SJ, Gibson GC, Meyers LA. Model for Interpreting Discordant SARS-CoV-2 Diagnostic Test Results. Emerg Infect Dis. 2024;30(2):388-391. doi:10.3201/eid3002.230200.

     

    2023

    • de Rosa F, Escott M, Havron D, Walkes D, Meyers LA. The C3C Game: Serious Games and Community-Centered Design for Improved Pandemic Decision Making. In: Dondio, P., et al. Games and Learning Alliance. GALA 2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14475. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49065-1_14.
    • Johnson KE, Pasco R, Woody S, Lachmann M, Johnson-Leon M, Bhavnani D, Klima J, Paltiel AD, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. Optimizing COVID-19 testing strategies on college campuses: Evaluation of the health and economic costs. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19(12): e1011715. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011715.
    • Howerton, E., Contamin, L., Mullany, L.C. et al. Evaluation of the US COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub for informing pandemic response under uncertainty. Nat Commun 14, 7260 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42680-x.
    • Du Z, Wang Y, Bai Y, Wang L, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. Estimate of COVID-19 Deaths, China, December 2022–February 2023. Emerg Infect Dis. 2023;29(10):2121-2124. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2910.230585.  
    • Fox SJ, Javan E, Pasco R, Gibson GC, Betke B, Herrera-Diestra JL, Woody S, Pierce K, Johnson KE, Johnson-León M, Lachmann M, Meyers LA. Disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 in a large US city. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19(6): e1011149. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011149.
    • Pasco R, Johnson K, Fox SJ, Pierce KA, Johnson-León M, Lachmann M, Morton D, Meyers LA. COVID-19 Test Allocation Strategy to Mitigate SARS-CoV-2 Infections across School Districts. Emerg Infect Dis. 2023;29(3):501-510. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2903.220761
    • Bi K, Herrera-Diestra JL, Bai Y, Du Z, Wang L, Gibson G, Johnson-Leon M, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. The risk of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant emergence in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Epidemics 2023; 42 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epidem.2022.100660. 
    • Shea K et al. Multiple models for outbreak decision support in the face of uncertainty. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023; 120. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2207537120 
    • Prasad PV et al. Multimodeling approach to evaluating the efficacy of layering pharmaceutical and nonpharmaceutical interventions for influenza pandemics. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023; 120. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2300590120
    • Gibson GC, Woody S, James E, Weldon M, Fox SJ, Meyers LA, Bhavnani D. Real time monitoring of COVID-19 intervention effectiveness through contact tracing data. Scientific Reports 2023; 13, 9371 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-35892-0.  
    • Javan EM, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. Estimating the undetected emergence of COVID-19 in the US. PLoS ONE 2023; 18(4): e0284025. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0284025. 
    • Pandey A et al. Disease burden among Ukrainians forcibly displaced by the 2022 Russian invasion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023;120. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2215424120
    • Lopez L, Dommar C, San José A, Meyers LA, Fox S, Castro L, Rodó. Changing risk of arboviral emergence in Catalonia due to higher probability of autochthonous outbreaks. Ecological Modeling 2023; 447 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.110258

     

    2022

    • Du Z et al. Pandemic fatigue impedes mitigation of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022;119. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2213313119
    • Bai Y, Du Z, Xu M, Wang L, Wu P, Lau EHY, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. International risk of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant importations originating in South Africa. J Travel Med. 2022 Sep 17;29(6):taac073. doi: 10.1093/jtm/taac073. 
    • Fox SJ, Lachmann M, Tec M, Pasco R, Woody S, Du Z, Wang X, Ingle TA, Javan E, Dahan M, Gaither K, Escott ME, Adler SI, Johnston SC, Scott JG, Meyers LA. Real-time pandemic surveillance using hospital admissions and mobility data. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022;119. doi:10.1073/pnas.2111870119
    • Du Z, Wang L, Bai Y, Wang X, Pandey A, Fitzpatrick MC, Chinazzi M, Pastore y Piontti A, Hupert N, Lachman M, Vespignani A, Galvani AP, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. Cost-effective proactive testing strategies during COVID-19 mass vaccination: A modelling study. 2022. The Lancet Regional Health - Americas 8:100182; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lana.2021.100182.
    • Wang X, Du Z, James E, Fox SJ, Lachmann M, Meyers LA, Bhavnani D. The effectiveness of COVID-19 testing and contact tracing in a US city. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022;119 (34), e2200652119
    • Du Z, Bai Y, Wang L, Herrera-Diestra JL, Yuan Z, Guo R, Cowling B, Meyers LA, Holme P. Optimizing COVID-19 surveillance using historical electronic health records of influenza infections, PNAS Nexus, Volume 1, Issue 2, May 2022, pgac038, https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac038
    • Audirac M, Tec M, Meyers LA, Fox S, Zigler C. Impact of the Timing of Stay-at-Home Orders and Mobility Reductions on First-Wave COVID-19 Deaths in US Counties, American Journal of Epidemiology, Volume 191, Issue 5, May 2022, Pages 900–907, https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwac027
    • Cramer EY et al. Evaluation of individual and ensemble probabilistic forecasts of COVID-19 mortality in the United States. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119, 15, (2022). /doi/10.1073/pnas.2113561119
    • Du Z, Fox SJ, Ingle T, Pignone MP, Meyers LA. Projecting the Combined Health Care Burden of Seasonal Influenza and COVID-19 in the 2020–2021 Season. MDM Policy & Practice. January 2022. doi:10.1177/23814683221084631.
    • Hayden FG, Asher J, Cowling BJ, Hurt AC, Ikematsu H, Kuhlbusch K, Lemenuel-Diot A, Du Z, Meyers LA, Piedra PA, Takazono T, Yen HL, Monto AS. Reducing influenza virus transmission: the value of antiviral treatment. Clin Infect Dis. 2022 Feb 1;. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciab625. PubMed PMID: 34245250.

     

    2021

    • Johnson KE, Woody S, Lachmann M, Fox SJ, Klima J, Hines TS, Meyers LA. Real-Time Projections of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 Variant in a University Setting, Texas, USA. Emerg Infect Dis. 2021;27(12):3188-3190. doi:10.3201/eid2712.210652.
    • Yang H, Sürer Ö, Duque D, Morton DP, Singh B, Fox SJ, Pasco R, Pierce K, Rathouz P, Valencia V, Du Z, Pignone M, Escott ME, Adler SI, Johnston SC, Meyers LA. Design of COVID-19 staged alert systems to ensure healthcare capacity with minimal closures. Nat Commun. 2021 Jun 18;12(1):3767. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-23989-x. PubMed PMID: 34145252; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8213780.
    • Perofsky AC, Meyers LA, Abondano LA, Di Fiore A, and Lewis RJ, Social groups constrain the spatiotemporal dynamics of wild sifaka gut microbiomes. Mol Ecol. 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.16193.
    • Moghadas SM, Sah P, Shoukat A, Meyers LA, Galvani AG. et al. Population Immunity Against COVID-19 in the United States. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2021. doi:10.7326/M21-2721.
    • Wang X, Du Z, Johnson KE, Pasco RF, Fox SJ, Lachmann M, McLellan JS, Meyers LA. Effects of COVID-19 Vaccination Timing and Risk Prioritization on Mortality Rates, United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 2021 Jul;27(7):1976-1979. doi: 10.3201/eid2707.210118. PubMed PMID: 34152963
    • Ingle TA, Morrison M, Wang X, Mercer T, Karman V, Fox S, Meyers LA. Projecting COVID-19 isolation bed requirements for people experiencing homelessness. 2021. PLoS ONE 16(5): e0251153. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0251153
    • Capobianco R, Kompella V, Ault J, Sharon G, Jong S, Fox S, Meyers LA, Wurman PR, Stone P. Agent-Based Markov Modeling for Improved COVID-19 Mitigation Policies. J Artif Intell Res. 2021;71: 953–992.
    • Du Z, Pandey A, Bai Y, Fitzpatrick MC, Chinazzi M, Piontti AP, Lachmann M, Vespignani A, Cowling BJ, Galvani AP, Meyers LA. Comparative cost-effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies: A modelling study. 2021. Lancet Public Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(21)00002-5
    • Risanger S, Singh B, Morton D, Meyers LA. Selecting pharmacies for COVID-19 testing to ensure access. 2021. Health Care Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10729-020-09538-w
    • Stockmaier S, Stroeymeyt N, Shattuck EC, Hawley DM, Meyers, LA, Bolnick DI. Infectious diseases and social distancing in nature. Science. 2021; 371(6533):eabc8881. DOI: 10.1126/science.abc8881
    • Du Z, Wang L, Yang B, Ali ST, Tsang TK, Shan S, Wu P, Lau EHY, Cowling, BJ, Meyers LA. Risk for International Importations of Variant SARS-CoV-2 Originating in the United Kingdom. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 24 Mar 2021, 27(5):1527-1529. DOI: 10.3201/eid2705.210050 PMID: 33760727 
    • Gillespie DL, Meyers LA, Lachmann M, Redd SC, Zenilman JM. The Experience of 2 Independent Schools With In‐Person Learning During the COVID‐19 Pandemic. Journal of School Health. 2021; 91(5):347-355. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.13008

     

    2020

    • Pasco RF, Fox SJ, Johnston SC, Pignone M, Meyers LA. Estimated association of construction work with risks of COVID-19 infection and hospitalization in Texas. JAMA Network Open. 2020;3(10):e2026373. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.26373
    • Singh B, Risanger S, Morton D, Pignone M, Meyers LA. Expanding access to COVID-19 tests through US Postal Service facilities. Medical Decision Making. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272989X20969690
    • Pierce KA, Ho E, Wang X, Pasco R, Du Z, Zynda G, Song J, Wells G, Fox S, Meyers LA. Early COVID-19 pandemic modeling: Three compartmental model cases studies from Texas, USA. Computing in Science & Engineering. 2020. doi: 10.1109/MCSE.2020.3037033
    • Duque D, Morton DP, Singh B, Du Z, Pasco R, Meyers LA. Timing social distancing to avert unmanageable COVID-19 hospital surges. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Aug 2020, 117 (33) 19873-19878; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2009033117
    • Du Z, Javan E, Nugent C, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. Using the COVID-19 to influenza ratio to estimate early pandemic spread in Wuhan, China and Seattle, US. EClinicalMedicine. 2020; 26:100479. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2020.100479
    • Scarpino SV, Scott JG, Eggo RM, Clements B, Dimitrov NB, Meyers LA. Socioeconomic bias in influenza surveillance. PLoS Computational Biology. 2020; 16(7): e1007941. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1007941
    • Du Z, Xu X, Wang L, Fox SJ, Cowling BJ, Galvani AP, Meyers LA. Effects of proactive social distancing on COVID-19 outbreaks in 58 cities, China. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2020;26(9):2267-2269. doi:10.3201/eid2609.201932
    • Wang X, Du Z, Huang G, Pasco RF, Fox SJ, Galvani AP, Pignone M, Johnston SC, Meyers LA. Effects of cocooning on coronavirus disease rates after relaxing social distancing. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2020; 26(12). DOI: 10.3201/eid2612.201930
    • Wang X, Pasco RF, Du Z, Petty M, Fox SJ, Galvani AP, Pignone M, Johnston SC, Meyers LA. Impact of social distancing measures on coronavirus disease healthcare demand, central Texas, USA. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2020;26(10):2361-2369. doi:10.3201/eid2610.201702
    • Du Z, Nugent C, Galvani AP, Krug RM, Meyers LA. Modeling mitigation of influenza epidemics by baloxavir. Nature Communications. 2020; 11:2750. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-16585-y
    • Du Z, Wang L, Xu X, Wu Y, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. The serial interval of COVID-19 among publicly reported confirmed cases. Emerg Infect Dis. 2020;26. doi:10.3201/eid2606.200357
    • Meyers, LA, Zhanwei D, and Krug RM. Hoping for a COVID-19 antiviral that limits virus spread. Nature Research Microbiology Community. June 2020.
    • Meyers LA. 2020. The secret life of coronavirus: Why we need such drastic social distancing measures. The Economist Intelligence Unit. March 2020.
    • Weitz, JS, Lenski RE, Meyers LA, Dushoff J.  Scientists do the math to show how large events like March Madness could spread coronavirus. Atlanta Journal Constitution. March 2020.
    • Castro LA, Bedford T, Meyers LA. Early prediction of antigenic transitions for influenza A/H3N2. PLoS Comput Biol. 2020;16: e1007683
    • Morrison M, Castro LA, Meyers LA. Conscientious vaccination exemptions in kindergarten to eighth-grade children across Texas schools from 2012 to 2018: A regression analysis. PLoS Medicine. 2020;17: e1003049
    • Buckee CO, Balsari S, Chan J, Crosas M, Dominici F, Gasser U, et al. Aggregated mobility data could help fight COVID-19. Science. 2020;368: 145–146
    • Moghadas SM, Shoukat A, Fitzpatrick MC, Wells CR, Sah P, Pandey A, et al. Projecting hospital utilization during the COVID-19 outbreaks in the United States. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020. doi:10.1073/pnas.2004064117
    • Wells CR, Sah P, Moghadas SM, Pandey A, Shoukat A, Wang Y, et al. Impact of international travel and border control measures on the global spread of the novel 2019 coronavirus outbreak. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020;117: 7504–7509
    • Du Z, Wang L, Cauchemez S, Xu X, Wang X, Cowling BJ, Meyers LA. Risk for Transportation of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease from Wuhan to Other Cities in China. Emerg Infect Dis. 2020;26. doi:10.3201/eid2605.200146

     

    Prior to 2020

    • Sah P, Alfaro-Murillo JA, Fitzpatrick MC, Neuzil KM, Meyers LA, Singer BH, Galvani AP (2019) Future epidemiological and economic impacts of universal influenza vaccines. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116 (41) 20786-20792; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1909613116
    • Fox SJ, Bellan SE, Perkins TA, Johansson MA, Meyers LA (2019) Downgrading disease transmission risk estimates using terminal importations. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 13(6): e0007395. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0007395
    • Wells CR, Pandey A, Parpia AS, Fitzpatrick MC, Meyers LA, Singer BH, & Galvani AP (2019). Ebola vaccination in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(20), 10178 LP-10183. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1817329116
    • Chen X, Dimitrov NB, Meyers LA (2019) Uncertainty analysis of species distribution models. PLoS ONE 14(5): e0214190. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0214190
    • Shen M, Xiao Y, Rong L, & Meyers LA (2019). Conflict and accord of optimal treatment strategies for HIV infection within and between hosts. Mathematical Biosciences, 309, 107–117. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mbs.2019.01.007
    • Ertem Z, Raymond D, Meyers LA (2018) Optimal multi-source forecasting of seasonal influenza. PLoS Computational Biology. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006236
    • Perofsky AC, Lewis RJ, Meyers LA (2018) Terrestriality and bacterial transfer: a comparative study of gut microbiomes in sympatric Malagasy mammals. The ISME Journal. doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0251-5 
    • Bellan SE, Champredon D, Dushoff J, Meyers LA (2018) Couple serostatus patterns in sub-Saharan Africa illuminate the relative roles of transmission rates and sexual network characteristics in HIV epidemiology. Scientific Reports 8: 6675 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-24249-7
    • Johansson MA, Reich JG, Meyers LA; Lipsitch M (2018) Preprints: An underutilized mechanism to accelerate outbreak science. PLoS Medicine 15: e1002549. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002549.
    • Shen M, Xiao Y, Rong L, Meyers LA; Bellan, SE (2018) The cost-effectiveness of oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and early antiretroviral therapy in the presence of drug resistance among men who have sex with men in San Francisco. BMC Medicine 16(1):58. doi: 10.1186/s12916-018-1047-1.
    • Perofsky AC, Lewis RJ, Abondano LA, Di Fiore A, Meyers LA (2017) Hierarchical social networks shape gut microbial composition in wild Verreaux's sifaka. Proceedings of the Royal Society B DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2274
    • Fox SJ, Miller JC, Meyers LA (2017) Seasonality in risk of pandemic influenza emergence. PLOS Computational Biology DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005749
    • Huang H-C, Singh B, Morton DP, Johnson GP, Clements B, Meyers LA (2017) Equalizing access to pandemic influenza vaccines through optimal allocation to public health distribution points. PLoS ONE 12(8): e0182720. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0182720
    • Shen M, Xiao Y, Rong L, Meyers LA, Bellan SE. (2017) Early antiretroviral therapy and potent second-line drugs could decrease HIV incidence of drug resistance. Proceedings of the Royal Society B DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0525
    • Huang, H.-C., Araz, O. M., Morton, D. P., Johnson, G. P., Damien, P., Clements, B., & Meyers, L. A. (2017). Stockpiling Ventilators for Influenza Pandemics. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 23(6), 914–921. http://doi.org/10.3201/eid2306.161417 
    • Singh B and Meyers LA (2017) Estimation of single-year-of-age counts of live births, fetal losses, abortions, and pregnant women for counties of Texas. BMC Research Notes DOI: 10.1186/s13104-017-2496-x
    • Castro LC, Fox SJ, Chen X, Liu K, Bellan SE, Dimitrov NB, Galvani AP, Meyers LA (2017) Assessing real-time Zika risk in the United States. BMC Infectious Diseases DOI: 10.1186/s12879-017-2394-9
    • Scarpino SV, Meyers LA, Johansson MA. (2017) Design Strategies for Efficient Arbovirus Surveillance. Emerging Infectious Diseases DOI: 10.3201/eid2304.160944.
    • Herrera, J.L., R. Srinivasan, J.S. Brownstein, A.P. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2016). Disease Surveillance on Complex Social Networks. PLoS Computational Biology. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004928.
    • Eggo, R.M., J.G. Scott, A.P. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2016) Respiratory virus transmission dynamics determine timing of asthma exacerbation peaks: Evidence from a population-level model Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1518677113.
    • Fischer, L.S., S. Santibanez, R.J.Hatchett, D.B. Jernigan, L.A. Meyers, P.G. Thorpe, M.I. Meltzer (2016) CDC Grand Rounds: Modeling and Public Health Decision-Making. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 65:1374–1377. DOI: DOI: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6548a4.
    • Althouse, B.M., S.V. Scarpino, L.A. Meyers et al. (2015) Enhancing disease surveillance with novel data streams: challenges and opportunities. EPJ Data Science 4:17.
    • Hoen, A.G., T.J. Hladish, R.M. Eggo, M. Lenczner, J.S. Brownstein, L.A. Meyers (2015) Epidemic Wave Dynamics Attributable to Urban Community Structure: A Theoretical Characterization of Disease Transmission in a Large Network. J Med Internet Res 17(7):e169.
    • Bellan, S.E., J. Dushoff, A. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2015). Reassessment of HIV-1 Acute Phase Infectivity: Accounting for Heterogeneity and Study Design with Simulated Cohorts. PLoS Medicine 12: e1001801. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001801
    • Bellan, S.E., J.R.C. Pulliam, C.A.B. Pearson, D. Champredon, S.J. Fox, L. Skrip, A.P. Galvani, M. Gambhir, B.A. Lopman, T.C. Porco, L.A. Meyers, J. Dushoff (2015). The statistical power and validity of Ebola vaccine trials in Sierra Leone: A simulation study of trial design and analysis. Lancet Infectious Diseases 15: 703-710
    • Gutfraind, S., A. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2015) Efficacy and Optimization of Palivizumab Injection Regimens against RSV. JAMA Pediatrics. DOI:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2014.3804.
    • Gutfraind, S. and L.A. Meyers (2015) Evaluating large-scale blood transfusion therapy for the current Ebola epidemic in Liberia. Journal of Infectious Diseases. DOI:10.1093/infdis/jiv042.
    • Singh B, Huang HC, Morton D, Johnson G, Gutfraind A, Galvani A, Clements B, Meyers LA (2015) Optimizing Distributions of Pandemic Influenza Antivirals. Emerging Infectious Diseases 21:251-258.
    • Bellan, S.E., J.R.C. Pulliam, J. Dushoff, and L.A. Meyers (2014) Letter: Ebola virus vaccine trials: the ethical mandate for a therapeutic safety net. British Medical Journal 349:g7518. 
    • Bellan, S.E., J.R.C. Pulliam, J. Dushoff, and L.A. Meyers (2014) Correspondence: Ebola control: effect of asymptomatic infection and acquired immunity. The Lancet 385: 1499-1500. 
    • Scarpino, S.V., A. Lamarino, C. Wells, D. Yamin, M. Ndeffo-Mbah, N.S. Wenzel, S.J. Fox, T. Nyenswah, F.L. Altice, A.P. Galvani, L.A. Meyers, J.P. Townsend (2014) Epidemiological and viral genomic sequence analysis of the 2014 Ebola outbreak reveals clustered transmission. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 
    • Lofgren et al. [19th of 20 authors] (2014) Opinion: Mathematical models: A key tool for outbreak response. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 11: 18095-18096. 
    • Scarpino, S.V., D.A. Levin and L.A. Meyers (2014) Polyploid formation shapes flowering plant diversity. The American Naturalist 184: 456-465.
    • Fitzpatrick M.C., K. Hampson, S. Cleaveland, I. Mzimbiri, F. Lankester, T. Lembo, L.A. Meyers, A.D. Paltiel and A.P. Galvani (2014) Cost-effectiveness of canine vaccination to prevent human rabies in rural Tanzania. Ann Intern Med. 160 (2) :91-100. PMID: 24592494
    • Rushmore, J., D. Caillaud, R. Hall, R. Stumpf, L.A. Meyers, and S. Altizer (2014) Network-based vaccination improves prospects for disease control in wild chimpanzees. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 11: 20140349.
    • Gilbert, J.A., L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani and J.P. Townsend (2014) Probabilistic uncertainty analysis of epidemiological modeling to guide public health intervention policy. Epidemics 6:37-45. Epub 2013 Nov 19. PMID: 24593920.
    • Caillaud, D., M.E. Craft and L.A. Meyers (2013) Epidemiological effects of group size variation in social species. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 10: 20130206.
    • Ndeffo Mbah, M.L., J. Medlock, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani, A.P., J.P. Townsend (2013) Optimal targeting of seasonal influenza vaccination toward younger ages is robust to parameter uncertainty. Vaccine 30: 3079-89. PMID: 23684837
    • Ndeffo Mbah, M.L., E.F. Kjetland, K.E. Atkins, E.M. Poolman, E.W. Orenstein, L.A. Meyers, J.P. Townsend, A.P. Galvani (2013) Cost-effectiveness of a community-based intervention for reducing the transmission of Schistosoma haematobium and HIV in Africa. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 19: 7952-7. 
    • Ndeffo Mbah ML, Poolman EM, Atkins KE, Orenstein EW, Meyers LA, Townsend JP and Galvani AP (2013) Potential Cost-Effectiveness of Schistosomiasis Treatment for Reducing HIV Transmission in Africa - The Case of Zimbabwean Women. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 8:e2346. PMID: 23936578
    • Durham, D.P., M.L. Ndeffo Mbah, J. Medlock, P.M. Luz, L.A. Meyers, A.D. Paltiel, A.P. Galvani, A.P. (2013) Dengue dynamics and vaccine cost-effectiveness in Brazil. Vaccine 37: 3957-61. PMID: 23791696.
    • Scarpino, S.V., N.B. Dimitrov, L.A. Meyers (2012) Optimizing Provider Recruitment for Influenza Surveillance Networks. PLoS Computational Biology 8: e1002472.
    • Bansal, S. and L.A. Meyers (2012) The impact of past epidemics on future disease dynamics. Journal of Theoretical Biology 309: 176-184. 
    • Hladish, T.J., E. Melamud, L.A. Barrera, A. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2012) EpiFire: An open source C++ library and application for contact network epidemiology. BMC Bioinformatics 13: 76. 
    • Fitzpatrick M.C., K. Hampson, S. Cleaveland, L.A. Meyers, J.P. Townsend, A.P. Galvani (2012) Potential for Rabies Control through Dog Vaccination in Wildlife-Abundant Communities of Tanzania. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 6(8): e1796. 
    • Araz, O.M., P. Damien, D.A. Paltiel, S. Burke, B. van de Geijn, A. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2012) Simulating school closure policies for cost effective pandemic decision making. BMC Public Health 12: 449. 
    • Davoudi, B. J.C. Miller, R. Meza, L.A. Meyers, D.J.D. Earn, B. Pourbohloul (2012) Early Real-Time Estimation of the Basic Reproduction Number of Emerging Infectious Diseases. Physial Review X 2: 031005. 
    • Araz, O.M., A. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2012) Geographic prioritization of distributing pandemic influenza vaccines. Health Care Management Science. 
    • Benavides, J. P.D., Walsh, L.A. Meyers, M. Raymond, D. Caillaud (2012) Transmission of Infectious Diseases En Route to Habitat Hotspots. PLoS ONE 7(2): e31290.
    • Tekle, Y.I., K.M. Nielsen, J. Liu, M.M. Pettigrew, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani and J.P. Townsend (2012) Controlling Antimicrobial Resistance through Targeted, Vaccine-Induced Replacement of Strains. PLoS ONE 7: e50688.
    • Mbah, M.L.N., J. Liu, C.T. Bauch, Y.I. Tekel, J. Medlock, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani (2012) The impact of imitation versus rationality on vaccination behavior in social contact networks. PLoS Computational Biology 8(4): e1002469.
    • Volz, E.M., J.C.Miller, A.P. Galvani, L.A. Meyers (2011) Effects of Heterogeneous and Clustered Contact Patterns on Infectious Disease Dynamics. PLoS Computational Biology 7: e1002042.
    • Cornforth, D., T. Reluga, A. Galvani, C. Bauch, E. Shim, L.A. Meyers (2011) Erratic flu vaccination emerges from short-sighted behaviour in contact networks. PLoS Computational Biology 7: e1001062. 
    • Dimitrov, N., S. Goll, N. Hupert, B. Pourbohloul, L.A. Meyers (2011) Optimizing Tactics for use of the U.S. Antiviral Strategic National Stockpile for Pandemic Influenza. PLoS ONE 6: e16094.
    • Conway et al. (L.A. Meyers 11th of 21 authors) (2011) Vaccination against 2009 pandemic H1N1 in a population dynamical model of Vancouver, Canada: timing is everything. BMC Public Health 11: 932.
    • Li, M., G.B. Chapman, Y. Ibuka, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani (2011) Who got vaccinated against H1N1 pandemic flu? A longitudinal study. Psychology and Health. DOI:10.1080/08870446.2011.554833.
    • Wells, C., J.M. Tchuenche, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani, C.T. Bauch (2011) Impact of Imitation Processes on the Effectiveness of Ring Vaccination. Bulletin of Mathematical Biology. DOI 10.1007/s11538-011-9646-4. 
    • E. Shim, L.A. Meyers, A.P. Galvani. (2011) Optimal H1N1 vaccination strategies based on self-interest versus group interest. BMC Public Health 11(Suppl 1): S4.
    • Craft, M.E., E. Volz, C. Packer, L.A. Meyers (2010) Disease transmission in territorial populations: The small-world network of Serengeti lions. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 8: 776-786. 
    • Volz, E., S.D.W. Frost, R. Rothenberg, L.A. Meyers (2010) Epidemiological bridging by injection drug use drives an early HIV epidemic. Epidemics 2: 155-164.
    • Bansal, S., J. Read, B. Pourbohloul, L.A. Meyers (2010) The dynamic nature of contact networks in infectious disease epidemiology. Journal of Biological Dynamics 4: 478-489.
    • Dimitrov, N.B. and L.A. Meyers (2010) Mathematical Approaches to Infectious Disease Prediction and Control. J. J. Hasenbein, ed. INFORMS TutORials in Operations Research 7: 1-25.
    • Ibuka, Y., G.B. Chapman, L.A. Meyers, M. Li, A.P. Galvani (2010) The dynamics of risk perceptions and precautionary behavior in response to 2009 (H1N1) pandemic influenza. BMC Infectious Diseases 10: 296.
    • Bansal, S., B. Pourbohloul, N. Hupert, B. Grenfell, L.A. Meyers (2010) The Shifting Demographic Landscape of Pandemic Influenza. PLoS ONE 5: e9360. (Earlier version published on PLoS Currents Influenza (2009))
    • Medlock, J., L.A. Meyers, A. Galvani (2009) Optimizing allocation for a delayed influenza vaccination campaign. PLoS Currents: Influenza: RRN1134. 
    • Bansal, S., S. Khandelwal, L.A. Meyers (2009) Exploring Biological Network Structure with Clustered Random Networks. BMC Bioinformatics 10: 405.
    • Pourbohloul, B., A. Ahued, B. Davoudi, R. Meza, L.A. Meyers, et al. (2009) Initial human transmission dynamics of the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus in North America. Influenza and other Respiratory Viruses 3: 215-222.
    • Craft, M.E., E. Volz, C. Packer, L.A. Meyers (2009) Distinguishing epidemic waves from disease spillover in a wildlife population. Proc Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 276: 1777-1785.
    • L.A. Meyers (2008) Statistics Primer. To accompany Life: The Science of Biology, 8th Edition. Sinauer Associates.
    • Cowperthwaite, M.C., E.P. Economo, W.R. Harcombe, E.L. Miller, L.A. Meyers (2008) A Simple Rule Shapes Phenotype Evolution. PLoS Computational Biology 4: e1000110.
    • Volz, E., L.A. Meyers (2008) Static network approximations and epidemic thresholds for a simple SIR model in dynamic contact networks. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 6: 233-241.
    • Volz, E., L.A. Meyers (2007) Susceptible–infected–recovered epidemics in dynamic contact networks. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 274: 2925-2933. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2007.1159
    • Bansal, S., B.T. Grenfell, L.A. Meyers (2007) When individual behavior matters: homogeneous and network models in epidemiology. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 4: 879-891.
    • Meyers, L.A. (2007) Contact network epidemiology: Bond percolation applied to infectious disease prediction and control. Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society 44: 63-86.
    • Cowperthwaite, M., L.A. Meyers (2007) How mutational networks shape evolution: Lessons from RNA models. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics 38: 203-230.
    • Bansal, S., B. Pourbohloul, L.A. Meyers (2006) A comparative analysis of influenza vaccination programs. PLoS Medicine 3: e387. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.0030387
    • Ferrari, M.J., S. Bansal, L.A. Meyers, O.N. Bjørnstad (2006) Network frailty and the geometry of herd immunity. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 273: 2743-2748.
    • Meyers, L.A., M.E.J. Newman, B. Pourbohloul (2006) Predicting epidemics on directed contact networks. Journal of Theoretical Biology 240: 400-418
    • Cowperthwaite, M., J.J. Bull, L.A. Meyers (2006) From bad to good: Fitness reversals and the ascent of deleterious mutations. PLoS Computational Biology 2: e141.
    • Meyers, L.A., D.A. Levin (2006) On the abundance of polyploids in flowering plants. Evolution 60: 1198-1206.
    • Cowperthwaite, M., J.J. Bull, L.A. Meyers (2005) Distributions of beneficial fitness effects in RNA. Genetics 170: 1449-1457.
    • Meyers, L.A., F. Ancel, M. Lachmann (2005) Evolution of genetic potential. PLoS Computational Biology 1: 236-243.
    • Meyers, L.A., B. Pourbohloul1, M.E.J. Newman, D.M. Skowronski, R.C. Brunham (2005) Network theory and SARS: Predicting outbreak diversity. Journal of Theoretical Biology 232: 71-81. doi: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2004.07.026
    • Pourbohloul, B., L.A. Meyers, Krajden, M., Patrick, D.M., Brunham, R.C. (2005) A quantitative comparison of control strategies for respiratory-borne pathogens. Emerging Infectious Diseases 11: 1249-1256.
    • Bull, J.J., L.A. Meyers, M. Lachmann (2005) Quasispecies made simple. PLoS Computational Biology 1: 450-460.
    • Meyers, L.A. (2005) Constraints on variation from genotype through phenotype to fitness, in “Variation: A Hierarchical Examination of a Central Concept in Biology” (B. Hallgrimsson and B. Hall, Eds.), Academic Press.
    • Meyers, L.A. and W. Fontana (2005) Evolutionary lock-in and the origin of modularity in RNA structure, in “Modularity – Understanding the Development and Evolution of Complex Natural Systems” (W. Callebaut and D. Rasskin-Gutman, Eds.), MIT Press.
    • Meyers, L.A. (2004) Book review of Gerhard Schlosser and Günter Wagner (Eds.), “Modularity in Development and Evolution” Science 306: 814-815.
    • Meyers, L.A. (2004) Book review of Bruce H. Weber and David J. Depew (Eds.), “Evolution and Learning: The Baldwin Effect Reconsidered” American Journal of Human Biology 16: 495-496.
    • Meyers, L.A., J.F. Lee, M. Cowperthwaite, A.D. Ellington (2004) The robustness of naturally and artificially selected nucleic acid secondary structures. Journal of Molecular Evolution 58: 681-691.
    • Lee, J.F., J.R. Hesselberth, L.A. Meyers, and A.D. Ellington (2004) Aptamer database. Nucleic Acids Research, 32: D95-D100.
    • Meyers, L.A., B.R. Levin, A.R. Richardson and I. Stojilkovic (2003) Epidemiology, hypermutation, within-host evolution and the virulence of Neisseria meningitidis. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 270: 1667-1677.
    • Meyers, L.A., M.E.J. Newman, M. Martin and S. Schrag (2003) Applying network theory to epidemics: Control measures for Mycoplasma pneumoniae outbreaks. Emerging Infectious Diseases 9: 204-210.
    • De Visser, J.A.G.M., J. Hermisson, G.P. Wagner, L.A. Meyers, et al. (2003) Perspective: Evolution and Detection of Genetic Robustness. Evolution 57: 1959-1972.
    • Meyers, L.A. and J.J. Bull (2002) Fighting change with change: adaptive variation in an uncertain world. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 17: 551-557.
    • Ancel, L.W. and W. Fontana (2000) Plasticity, evolvability and modularity in RNA. Journal of Experimental Zoology (Molecular and Developmental Evolution) 288: 242-283. doi: 10.1002/1097-010x(20001015)288:3<242::aid-jez5>3.0.co;2-o.
    • Ancel, L.W. (2000) Undermining the Baldwin expediting effect: How phenotypic plasticity influences the rate of evolution. Theoretical Population Biolgy, 58: 307-319.
    • Ancel, L.W. (1999) A quantitative model of the Simpson-Baldwin effect. Journal of Theoretical Biology 196: 197-209.
    • Ancel, L.W. and M. W. Hero (1998) One-way intervals of circle maps. Proceedings of the American Mathematical Society 126: 1191-1197.
    •  Ancel, L.W. (1992,94) National Security Agency Cryptologic Mathematics Papers: Three classified internal publications. 

Awards

  • 2024-present Elected Member, Philosophical Society of Texas
  • 2023 Key to the City of Austin – for leadership during COVID-19 pandemic
  • 2022-2028 Elected Member, Harvard University Board of Overseers
  • 2021 Kocurek Award, Peoples Community Clinic
  • 2018-present Denton A. Cooley Centennial Professorship
  • 2017 Joseph Lieberman Award for Significant Contributions to Science
  • 2011-2013, 2016-2018 William H. and Gladys G. Reeder Faculty Fellow, UT
  • 2010-2011 Donald D. Harrington Faculty Fellowship, UT
  • 2003-present External Faculty of the Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico
  • 2006-2015 Fellow, University of Texas Institute for Molecular and Cellular Biology
  • 2005 College of Natural Sciences Teaching Excellence Award, UT
  • 2004 MIT Technology Review TR100: One of 100 Top Global Innovators Under 35
  • 2004 Austin Business Success Center Award for Technological Innovation
  • 2000-2002 National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biological Informatics
  • 2000-2002 Santa Fe Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship
  • 2000 Samuel Karlin Prize for Ph.D Thesis in Mathematical Biology
  • 1999 Steinmetz Fellowship, Santa Fe Institute
  • 1996-1999 National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowship
  • 1991-1996 U.S. Congressional National Science Scholar