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An Interdisciplinary Research Centre at the University of Cambridge
 

Influenza virus particleViruses are responsible for a considerable disease burden in both humans and animals with new and emerging virus infections having the potential to cause future severe epidemics and pandemics.

Virology research at the University of Cambridge is directed towards an understanding of the fundamentals of virus infection; replication, pathogenesis and the host response with the aims of extending our knowledge in these areas to facilitate the development of novel therapies and vaccines.

These research programmes are concentrated principally in the Departments of Medicine and Pathology, the Veterinary School, and the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research. There are well-established links between researchers in these individual departments, as well as with other relevant researchers in Departments such as Biochemistry, Plant Sciences, and  Zoology (where the Antigenic Cartography Group provides support the WHO influenza vaccine strain selection process). Research into pathogen genomics is conducted through links with the Sanger Institute.

 Our key strengths at Cambridge include

  • virus pathogenesis and immune evasion
  • basic molecular virology
  • immunity to infection 
  • disease dynamics/mathematical modelling

Research in these areas is applied to specific viral pathogens, resulting in major internationally competitive research programmes into viruses such as herpes viruses, influenza, HIV, rotaviruses and papillomaviruses.


Dr Ian  Brierley
Department of Pathology
Translational control; ribosomal frameshifting and readthrough; virus gene expression; RNA structure and function
44-1223-336914
 David  Burke
Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Zoology
Computational approaches to understand the relationship between protein sequence, protein structure and biological function and disease.
Professor Anne  Cooke
Professor of Immunobiology
01223 333907
Dr Colin  Crump
Virus assembly and egress
+44 (0) 1223 763423
 Ulrich  Desselberger
Molecular biology of rotaviruses
+44 (0)1223 763403
 Lars  Dölken
Herpesviruses, virus-host interaction, non-coding RNAs, transcriptional regulation, systems biology, infection and immunity
Dr Brian  Ferguson
Innate recognition of viruses and vaccine development
Dr Effrossyni  Gkrania - Klotsas
A consultant in infectious diseases with an interest in primary and secondary immunodeficiencies and transplantation.
Professor Ian  Goodfellow
Department of Pathology
Virus-host interactions, with particular emphasis on noroviruses.
Stephen Graham
Professor of Virus:Host Interactions
Senior Tutor at Lucy Cavendish College
Dr Harriet   Groom
Stanley Elmore Research Fellow at Sidney Sussex College
Associated PI in the Department of Medicine
I research the molecular interactions between retroviruses and human cells
Professor Jonathan Luke Heeney
Comparative Pathology of Viral Infections
Head of the Lab of Viral Zoonotics
Contact: jlh66@cam.ac.uk
Dr Charlotte   Houldcroft
Assistant professor in virus genomics
 Nerea   Irigoyen
Research Group Leader, Virology, Department of Pathology
Understanding the role of Zika virus genome translation in viral pathogenicity and disease
Dr Aminu   Jahun
Research Associate, Department of Pathology
Covid-19 Genomics (COG-UK) consortium member
Novel sensing mechanisms of non-enveloped viruses.
 Sarah  James
Part Time Research Associate, Department of Zoology
Dr Francis  Jiggins
The evolution and genetics of insects and their pathogens
01223 333175
Dr Julia  Kenyon
Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Science and Associate Principal Investigator
Professor Andrew  Lever
Department of Medicine
Molecular and structural biology of how RNA viruses package their genetic material and how they select their own RNA from the cell so specifically.
Dr Eyal   Maori
Research Associate
+44 (0) 1223339040
 Velislava   Petrova
Characterisation of B cell immune repertoires in measles infection.
 Mark  Reacher
Faculty of Clinical Medicine
HPA East of England Regional Epidemiology Unit
Institute of Public Health
Public Health Surveillance,Cryptosporidium, Chlamydia,trachoma, Norovirus, Health Care Associated Infections.
Dr Jordan  Skittrall
Clinical Lecturer in Virology, Department of Pathology
Mathematical analyses of viral genomic data to predict function and drug targets
Professor Derek  Smith
Department of Zoology
Evolution and population dynamics of antigenically variable pathogens, particularly influenza viruses but also malaria, HIV, and HCV.
Dr Laurence S. Tiley
Senior Lecturer in Molecular Virology
Fellow of Queens' College (Part 1A MIMS supervisor)
Biological Safety Officer (Dept. Vet Medicine)
(01223) 339554 (Vet medicine) (01223) 330180 (Queens')
Dr Estee  Torok
1. Senior Program Officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
2. Honorary Consultant in Infectious Diseases & Microbiology, Addenbrooke's Hospital
3. Honorary Senior Visiting Fellow, University of Cambridge
Dr Lin  Wang
Research associate, Department of Genetics
Research Associate studying the impact of antigenic and genetic diversity of dengue virus (DENV) on driving DENV's transmission and disease risks.
Dr Lucy  Weinert
Wellcome Trust and Royal Society Henry Dale Fellow
Principal Investigator
01223 766247