Dolly Parton gives $1M to infectious disease research, again

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Dolly Parton is donating $1 million to pediatric infectious disease research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. The new gift is one of several Parton has made to the center over the years, including a $1 million gift in April 2020 for COVID vaccine research. The medical center said in a Wednesday news release that Parton’s new gift will support a variety of ongoing research. That includes investigating how viruses and bacteria cause disease and how to best prevent and treat infections. Parton says she supports the work because she loves children and wants to “keep as many of them as I can as healthy and safe as possible.”