Laboratory of Epigenetics of Viral Infections
We study how influenza A virus, SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses reprogram the cells they infect, and how those changes shape the course of infection and recovery.
To catch these changes in the act, we combine next-generation and long-read sequencing with multi-omics, biochemistry and molecular biology.
And we do it in systems that behave like real tissue: human airway models grown from iPSCs and adult stem cells, alongside mouse models of respiratory infection.
Viral infection generates a rich landscape of alternatively processed and translated RNAs and proteins, and almost all of it is missed when you only look at reference genes and transcripts. We hunt for these infection-specific molecules, work out how they arise, and test how they tip host-virus interactions and the outcome of infection.
A virus can dramatically remodel the chromatin landscape of its host cell, changing how genes are regulated during and after infection. We track down the viral and host factors behind this epigenetic reprogramming, and ask a question we find irresistible: do these changes fade once the infection clears, or do they leave a lasting molecular imprint on tissue recovery and long-term health?
Human airway epithelium grown from induced pluripotent stem cells
Airway cultures derived from adult basal stem cells
In vivo models of respiratory infection and recovery
The big goal? Uncover the fundamental mechanisms of viral disease, and turn those discoveries into new therapies that target both the virus and the damage it leaves in the host.
Jessica Ho, Principal Investigator
We are always keen to hear from curious, driven people who want to find out what viruses leave behind in our cells. PhD students, postdocs and visiting scientists: say hello.
Our mission
Infection rewrites how the host genome is read. We follow what that costs, and what recovers.