Session Chair: Dr Dalan Bailey, The Pirbright Institute (UK-ICN Co-Director for the Countermeasures and Interventions Theme)

Speaker 1: Prof. Gary Whittaker, Cornell University – Regulation of coronavirus spike protein-mediated membrane fusion and cell tropism

Prof. Whittaker studied Microbiology and Biochemistry at the University of Leeds where he was awarded a PhD degree in 1991, with a focus on the glycoproteins of equine herpesviruses. He then did post-doctoral studies on influenza virus at Yale Medical School before moving to Cornell in 1996, where his research is focused on influenza viruses and coronaviruses of humans and animals, including feline coronavirus. He focuses on the structure and function of the viral envelope proteins to understand how genomic mutations lead to changes in the protein structure and, in turn, lead to changes in viral tropism and pathogenesis. His research is designed to translate into novel therapeutics, vaccines and diagnostic tests. He is a currently a Professor in the Departments of Microbiology & Immunology and Public & Ecosystem Health in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University in Ithaca NY

Speaker 2: Dr Helena Maier, The Pirbright Institute – Understanding Coronavirus Replication Organelle Structure, Formation and Function

Helena Maier is Group Leader of the Coronavirus Cellular Biology group at The Pirbright Institute with 16 years’ experience studying molecular interactions between Coronaviruses and their host cells. A major focus of her research group is characterising virus induced replication organelles, rearranged cellular membranes that support viral RNA synthesis. Using a combination of advanced bioimaging and molecular virology approaches, her group is working to understand the viral and cellular proteins responsible for replication organelle formation, function of different elements of the replication organelle and conservation in these processes across the whole Coronavirus family.