Paul Bieniasz: "SARS-CoV-2 Variants vs Antibodies: An Evolutionary Conflict"

This week's speaker is Paul Bieniasz, an HHMI Investigator, professor, and head of the Laboratory of Retrovirology at The Rockefeller University.

Bieniasz seeks to define how host genes influence the replication of viruses, with an emphasis on human and primate immunodeficiency viruses. His lab tries to characterize the host functions that viruses mimic, manipulate, and otherwise exploit, as well as the defenses cells have evolved against viral infection. In addition to his work on modern viruses, Bieniasz has pioneered the field of “paleovirology,” which explores how ancient viruses impacted the evolution of their hosts. His lab also seeks to understand how ancient retroviruses were extinguished, which may give clues about how to combat modern viral infections. Bieniasz holds a PhD in virology from the University of London.

Organized by Janelia's Sarada Viswanathan and Loren Looger, the Science of COVID-19 seminar series brings in outside experts, covers papers and preprints, and highlights local efforts in testing, production, and analysis.

LEARN MORE: www.janelia.org/scienceofcovid19