Paul Brown

UC Merced's Health Sciences Research Institute is taking a step toward fighting valley fever. Despite evidence that as many as 80 percent of the residents in the San Joaquin Valley are exposed to the fungus that causes valley fever, there is little consensus around patients at highest risk of developing fungal infection, practical measures that can be taken to prevent exposure, treatment or reducing the burden of the disease on the people in the region. UC Merced's researchers are exploring the disease from a range of angles.

Brown is currently working with collaborators to identify the burden of disease of valley fever and access to healthcare services for vulnerable populations.