The Hill Lab

Drumroll, please! We’re thrilled to announce our new identity, “The Virus Plus Lab⁺,” and the launch of our revamped website.

Our new name encapsulates our passion for research that goes beyond the traditional boundaries of virology; the “plus” signifies our commitment to exploring the multifaceted intersections between virology and various fields, including evolution, disease ecology, diagnostics, machine learning and predictive models, public health, food security, wildlife conservation, and many more.

We believe that viruses hold immense potential to unravel the mysteries of fundamental biological processes and provide crucial insights for addressing pressing global challenges. By fostering collaborations across disciplines, we aim to harness the power of interdisciplinary research to advance scientific understanding and develop innovative solutions for a better-prepared, healthier, and more sustainable world.

Explore our new website to delve into our team, ongoing projects, and research interests. Stay up-to-date with our latest publications, news, and events through our dedicated sections.

Welcome to “The Virus Plus Lab⁺” – at the intersection of viruses and real-world problems.

It’s an important question that our lab gets asked a lot these days! We wrote an opinion article for the Boston Globe to share our thoughts about why we need to start paying closer attention to bird flu.

The strain known as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) of the H5N1 subtype has resulted in the biggest wildlife mortality event in history and the expanding host range of the virus poses risks for how the virus jumps into new hosts. Of the 1,000 species of wild birds in the United States, over 140 species have now been infected with H5N1, including iconic species such as Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, and nesting seabirds, such as Common and Roseate Terns. Check out the figure below (made by Jonathan Dain and Melba Torres, our two new grad students!) to see how the host range of the virus is increasing over time based on USDA data collected over the last year.

In addition, HPAI H5N1 now has a host range that has expanded beyond the avian reservoir. Infections have been reported in wild mammals ranging from grizzly bears, raccoons, bobcats, and skunks, with red foxes accounting for half of the 110 mammalian infections occurring in the US. Luckily, we have seen only individual mutations and not the required 3 to 5 mutations that would allow HPAI H5N1 to replicate in the upper airways, rather than deeper in the lungs — a transition that would open the door for human-to-human spread. The figure below shows a possible pathway for bird flu to become a pandemic in humans, involving mutations that change the function and stability of the virus.

We also discuss solutions from vaccination to small-scale agriculture and farming of resistant breeds of indigenous poultry in a Nature Magazine article. Stay tuned for updates!

We have two new graduate students in the lab. Meet Jonathan (he/him) and Melba (she/her)! Both joined the lab in September 2022. Jonathan is a herpetologist/ornithologist/everything-ologist, who completed his Bachelor of Science at the San Diego State University, then gained biotech industry experience before deciding to pursue a PhD in Environmental Biology. He’s a true natural historian: in his element outside, observing wild critters, and pondering questions about evolution across micro- and macro- scales. Melba graduated with a B.S. from the Colorado State University where she first fell in love with Microbiology. While working as a cytology aid in a pathology lab, she self-trained in bioinformatics, data science and machine learning. Melba is pursuing a PhD in Integrative Biosciences and now gets to combine her fondness of microbiology, complex datasets and birds to study health and disease.