Section of Virology

Our research focuses on the relationship between the virus and the host cell, using a number of DNA viruses (including herpesviruses, poxviruses), and RNA viruses (including coronaviruses, paramyxoviruses, bunyaviruses, flaviviruses).

Research interests

Cellular responses to virus infection – cell defence and virus counter-mechanisms involved in the interplay between virus and cell.
Virus morphogenesis – the interactions and cellular transport pathways involved in virus assembly and egress.
Regulation of RNA metabolism - how viruses hijack the cellular mRNA regulatory machinery (RNA modification, decay, translation) to enable large-scale virus production.
Systems virology - using powerful 'omics approaches to understand virus:cell interactions, focusing on tick-borne viruses
Utilising cutting-edge 3D cell culture to understand the role of respiratory virus infection and innate immune responses in the development and progression of chronic lung disease

We are expert in classical virology, molecular biology and cellular biology approaches, and techniques ranging from single cell imaging to proteomics, transcriptomics and translatomics to help us build a greater understanding of how viruses successfully replicate in their host cells.