James. A. Platts-Mills, MD ’09, Fel ’15
September 23, 2020 – The UVA Medical Alumni Association is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2020 Early Achievement Award: James A. Platts-Mills, MD ‘09, Fel ‘15, an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health at the University of Virginia.
During medical school, Platts-Mills achieved distinction in the basic science curriculum and was honored as a Bowman Scholar for outstanding performance in the clinical clerkships. His early research interests included designing and implementing a study of leptospirosis in Lima, Peru and working with Richard Guerrant, MD ’68, on a mouse model of Clostridium difficile diarrhea. He conducted his medicine residency at the University of California San Francisco, participating in the PRIME pathway, which permitted advanced training in research methodology and epidemiology.
He returned to UVA for his fellowship, working with Eric Houpt, MD, Fel ‘02, on the development, evaluation and application of molecular diagnostic tests for diarrheal pathogens, where he quickly found a niche in applying his broad analytical skills to complex datasets, and he joined UVA’s faculty in 2015. He has been an author on more than 70 papers, including a number of landmark papers in his field. He has gained an international reputation as an expert in the application of molecular diagnostics to studies of enteric infections.
Platts-Mills is the recipient of NIH career development and R01 research grants, as well as grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the CDC Foundation, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, and the World Health Organization. He received the Excellence in Research award from the Department of Medicine in 2017 and the Dean’s Excellence in Faculty Research award from the School of Medicine in 2018. He has served as a research mentor to undergraduates, medical students, residents and fellows and also works as an attending physician on the Infectious Diseases consult service and the General Medicine wards.
Congratulations to Dr. Platts-Mills on this well-deserved recognition.