Experimental Virology
Viruses are vehicles which transmit biological information, reprogramming the function of human, animal or plant cells to produce progeny virions. Viral pathogens are very small, often with a very simple structure. Nevertheless, viral pathogens like HIV or the hepatitis C virus (HCV) threaten the health of many millions of individuals. The Institute for Experimental Virology comprises three research groups that focus on hepatitis viruses (HCV, HEV), HIV-1, respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) and ist based at the TWINCORE in Hannover.
Leader
Prof Dr Thomas Pietschmann
We approach clinical questions on viral diseases such as HCV or HRSV at the molecular level and thus build a bridge between clinic and basic research.
Thomas Pietschmann, born in 1971 in Würzburg, studied biology with emphasis on biochemistry, animal physiology, virology and immunobiology at the University of Würzburg and the Duke University (Durham, NC, USA). After completing his studies in 1996, he received his Ph.D. degree in biology at the Institute for Virology of the University of Würzburg and subsequently worked as postdoc at the Institute for Virology in Mainz and in the Department for Molecular Virology in the University Clinic of Heidelberg. Thomas Pietschmann established there an independent research group that investigated the mechanisms of morphogenesis and cell entry of the hepatitis C virus. From the year 2006 his group was supported by an Emmy Noether fellowship from the German Research Community (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft). In the spring of 2007 he was appointed with his work group to TWINCORE. He now leads the Department for Experimental Virology there.
Further Information
A current overview of the team and further information about the research group can be found on the TWINCORE page.
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