Grant: Operating Grant

Everyday millions of cells within our body undergo cell death. Each cell contains a set of specific instructions that tells the cell when and how to committee cellular suicide, allowing unwanted cells to be efficiently eliminated. The ability to survive virus infections also depends on a rapid initiation of cell death that plays an essential role in eliminating virus-infected cells. However, some viruses have developed strategies to inhibit cell death allowing the virus to efficiently replicate and cause disease. Our aim is to understand how viruses interfere with the cellular mechanisms of cell death. We anticipate that the knowledge gained from studying how viruses regulate cell death will provide important clues for the development of new therapeutic approaches that prevent viral illness.