About Rod D. Martin
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by Patrick Cox
September 29, 2017
Zika eradication programs seemed to be working. That was before Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria wrecked infrastructures in Florida, Texas, and Puerto Rico. Now, all three regions are water-logged mosquito nurseries, and Puerto Rico may not have basic services for months. That means that mosquito control efforts will suffer.
In fact, many mosquitoes that spread the Zika virus have meteorologically relocated. So we can expect outbreaks in new locales.
The Rise of Treatment Resistant Superbugs
A new CDC report confirmed that Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes can thrive in most of the US. These are the types that carry dangerous viruses including Zika, yellow fever, dengue, and chikungunya.
We already knew this, though. These mosquitoes and the diseases they carried, including malaria, were once endemic in the US. DDT changed that, but then it was banned. Despite the return of limited DDT usage, disease-carrying mosquitoes continue to spread into welcoming habitats.
The diseases carried by mosquitoes keep evolving. Many have developed resistances to once effective medications. This includes a new super-malaria, spreading rapidly in Southeast Asia. Researchers warn that international travel and wind-blown mosquitoes could make this a global problem.
2017 marks the end of a record 12-year break during which no Category 3–5 hurricanes hit the US mainland. The longest previous record was an 8-year period between 1860 and 1869.
I think it’s unlikely that 2017 will be an anomaly. Hurricanes have historically come in cycles. Ten Category 4 or 5 storms made landfall on the US in the 50 years between 1920–1969. Only three have come onshore in the 46-year period since then. Clearly, we’re overdue for more.
I don’t know if it’s possible for humans to affect climate, but I’m 100% certain that nothing can be done that would have any real impact on weather for decades. As a result, there will be ample opportunities for virus-carrying mosquitos to extend their reach.
So we had better be prepared.
New Approaches to Infectious Disease
There is excellent progress being made in the fight against mosquito-borne pathogens. That progress comes out of entirely new approaches to infectious diseases and has the potential to end most contagious diseases.
The most obvious field of research is vaccines, but that will never be enough. We know that some of the population is vaccinophobic. Also, vaccines usually require several weeks to trigger an immune response. Giving someone a flu vaccine after they’ve contracted the influenza virus is useless.
More conventionally, monoclonal antibodies (mABs) skip the process of developing immunities. These drugs are antibodies produced by cloned cells that have already developed immunities to a disease.
Other drugs take this approach even farther. They use engineered genes that express disease-fighting antibodies.
Another solution comes from the field of nanobiotechnology. These engineered molecules act like microscopic Venus flytraps. They trap viruses in polymer nanovesicles that pass harmlessly from the body.
There is no doubt that science can solve the problem of infectious diseases. In fact, solutions already exist. Many of these technologies face a long, costly regulatory approval process, but they’re on their way. Ironically, most have received assistance from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
This probably shouldn’t surprise you. American soldiers are often called to work in parts of the world with severe disease problems. They also face the threat of bioweapons (pathogens) deployed for military or terrorist reasons.
It may be a sign of the times that many scientists working in infectious disease are critical of the FDA but supportive of DARPA. I’ve heard from more than one scientist that the Defense Department’s new technology division is the most important force for progress against infectious diseases today.
DARPA’s main function is only to identify and nurture scientific breakthroughs that offer solutions to natural and manmade threats. So it can fund early research and trials, but it can’t take a drug all the way through the costly clinical trial process.
For those interested in seeing cures for the big killers, DARPA is an important resource. If you’d like to follow some the agency’s work in biotech and other fields, much of DARPA’s research is online here.
— DARPA, Hurricanes, and the Zika Virus originally appeared at Transformational Technologies.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
