A molecular virologist, Britt Glaunsinger studies how viruses interface with an infected cell, as well as how they hijack cellular machinery for their own use. She is particularly interested in how herpesviruses shape the gene expression environment of their host cell. Her lab primarily studies gamma-herpesviruses, including Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus, a major cause of AIDS-associated cancers. Her research is meant to obtain a better understanding of virus–host interactions and give insight into how gene expression pathways are normally regulated in human cells.
Glaunsinger is a professor in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at UC Berkeley and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. Some of her favorite aspects of science are collaborating, interacting, teaching, and learning from people in the lab. She also strives for clear science communication throughout her research.
Glaunsinger earned her bachelor’s degree in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of Arizona and a Ph.D. in Molecular Virology at Baylor College of Medicine. She was a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Don Ganem at UC San Francisco.
