Kasson lab

The Kasson group focuses on how enveloped viruses infect cells.  Such viruses first bind to receptors on the cell surface and then release their genome into the cell via a process of membrane fusion.  We study the physical determinants that govern when and where these infectious processes can happen.  The group uses single-virus optical microscopy, molecular dynamics simulations, and other biophysical techniques to untangle the virus-membrane interactions that control infection.

Popular science presentation

We have all experienced viral diseases, and the single underlying constant of viral risk assessment is that there will be more.  The challenge is knowing where, when, and what we as a society can do about it.  Both risk assessment for viral pandemics and research into "everyday" viruses involve questions from the molecular to the global scale.  We focus on understanding the physical determinants of infection - what physical mechanisms govern where and how viruses can get into cells to make more copies and spread.  What controls whether a virus can infect humans, and within the human body which cells and tissues are susceptible to infection?  These questions form the basis for combatting existing viral diseases as well as understanding the physical challenges to emerging or novel diseases.

To understand these questions, we follow individual viruses in real time using microscopy as they interact with cells or with membrane mimics.  In particular, we design systems where we can chemically control aspects of the entry process - this both lets us understand mechanism and avoids the risks associated with genetic gain-of-function research.  We combine these approaches with computational modeling of the molecules in the viral and host membranes as they interact to gain a detailed view of the entry process.  We also seek to use the knowledge and the assays we develop to aid disease surveillance and clinical decision-making when possible.

Research projects

  • Why is influenza virus better at entering via endosomes?
  • Do insect-transmitted viruses interact with human and insect host membranes differently?
  • New optical probes for viral entry and RNA structural kinetics

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