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Bay Area Virus Network (BayViro)

Connecting the Bay Area's Virology Community

About

The Bay Area Virus Network (BayViro) represents a dynamic constellation of scientists, engineers, and clinician researchers across the San Francisco Bay Area who are working to understand, prevent, and control human and animal viral infections. Launched in 2012 by CEND, BayViro serves as a vital platform for connecting investigators at universities, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, and research institutes throughout the region.

The Bay Area offers a unique ecology for virus research, combining a long tradition of innovation with an unparalleled concentration of expertise. Our diverse community includes distinguished scientists like Jay Levy at UCSF, who co-discovered the AIDS virus in 1983, and Edward Penhoet at UC Berkeley, who discovered the Hepatitis C virus and founded Chiron, which developed the first vaccine against Hepatitis B.

Bay Area Laboratory Resources

Here you can find a comprehensive list of facilities within the Bay Area Virus Network and associated laboratories.

Our Mission

BayViro strengthens the network of Bay Area scientists working on virology, host-pathogen interactions, and viral infection control by:

Fostering Collaboration - Connecting researchers across institutions and sectors to share knowledge and resources

Advancing Research - Supporting cutting-edge virology research from basic mechanisms to clinical applications

Building Community - Creating opportunities for networking, mentorship, and partnership development

Accelerating Translation - Bridging the gap between laboratory discoveries and real-world applications
 

Symposium

Annual Bay Area Symposium on Viruses

The centerpiece of BayViro is our annual symposium, which brings together leading scientists and clinicians from across the region for a full day of presentations, discussions, and networking. The symposium features:

Leading Bay Area Scientists presenting breakthrough research

Roundtable Discussions on current challenges and opportunities

Poster Sessions showcasing graduate student and postdoc research

Networking Opportunities connecting investigators across institutions

Industry Perspectives from biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies
 

Highlights

Recent Symposium Highlights

2018 Symposium Topics

  • Fighting with phages: Vibrio cholerae defense against viral attack
  • HIV-latency reversing agents and therapeutic strategies
  • Flavivirus replication and host protein interactions
  • Antiviral medicine development trends and innovations
  • Single-cell transcriptional dynamics of virus infections

Distinguished Speakers Include

  • Jennifer Doudna (UC Berkeley)
  • Jay Levy (UCSF)
  • Eva Harris (UC Berkeley)
  • Britt Glaunsinger (UC Berkeley)
  • Peter Sarnow (Stanford)
  • Melanie Ott (Gladstone Institute)
  • Raul Andino (UCSF)
  • Jerome Deval (Alios BioPharma)
Who Participates

BayViro brings together researchers from leading institutions across the Bay Area:

Academic Institutions

  • UC Berkeley
  • UC San Francisco
  • Stanford University
  • UC Davis
  • Gladstone Institutes

Industry Partners

  • Gilead Sciences
  • Alios BioPharma
  • Blood Systems Research Institute
  • 3V Biosciences
  • Prosetta Antiviral

Research Centers

  • Chan Zuckerberg Biohub
  • Buck Institute
  • Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research
     
Research Impact

BayViro members work across the full spectrum of virology research, including:

  • Viral Pathogenesis - Understanding how viruses cause disease
  • Host-Pathogen Interactions - Exploring virus-host cell relationships
  • Antiviral Development - Creating new therapeutic approaches
  • Vaccine Research - Developing prevention strategies
  • Diagnostic Innovation - Improving viral detection and monitoring
  • Global Health Applications - Addressing viral diseases worldwide
     
Get Involved

BayViro welcomes participation from researchers, clinicians, and industry professionals working on viral infections across the Bay Area. Whether you're interested in presenting your research, attending symposiums, or exploring collaborative opportunities, BayViro provides a platform for advancing virology research and building lasting professional relationships.

For more information sign up for the CEND newsletter or reach out to cend@berkeley.edu if you’d like to learn more about attending BayViro
 

Overview

The Bay Area Virus Network represents a constellation of scientists, engineers, and clinician researchers in the San Francisco Bay Area who are working to understand, prevent, and control human and animal viral infections. It is a platform for connecting investigators at universities, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, and research institutes throughout the region.

The SF Bay Area offers a unique ecology for virus research, with its long tradition of innovation. Our diverse community of investigators is led by distinguished scientists like Jay Levy at UCSF, who co-discovered the AIDS virus in 1983, and Edward Penhoet at UC Berkeley, who discovered the Hepatitis C virus and went on to found Chiron (which developed the first vaccine against Hepatitis B).

CEND continues to serve as an administrative home for the network, with new co-sponsors including:

Organizations that sponsor the network benefit from participation in bayviro.org symposia and seminars, access to recruiting tools and networking events, and opportunities to interact directly with leading bay area researchers. To join as a sponsor, please email cend@berkeley.edu.

Major Participating Institutions

UC Berkeley

UC Berkeley excels in basic science research and possesses state-of-the-art facilities for conducting experiments involving next generation sequencing, proteomics, biomolecular structure determination, advanced microscopy, and transgenic animals. The virology community at UC Berkeley spans a number of departments and disciplines including Molecular and Cell Biology, Plant and Microbial Biology, Integrative Biology, Infectious Disease, Public Health, Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, and Environmental Science, Policy and Management. The collaborative atmosphere in virology at UC Berkeley is apparent in the multiple interest groups and organizations devoted to bringing together disparate techniques towards the goal of understanding virus-host interactions and the development of novel treatment approaches. The Center for Emerging and Neglected Diseases (CEND) is a cornerstone to the UC Berkeley virology community and acts to encourage interest in virology research by providing funding opportunities and arranging symposia on topics of current interest in the field. Collaborations with other Bay Area universities, the nearby Lawrence Berkeley National Labs (LBNL), and industry partners make UC Berkeley an epicenter for the study of viruses as well as their relation to humanity.

UCSF    University of California, San Francisco is a UC campus devoted to health and life sciences.  It is a powerhouse of scientific research and home to several virology labs.  Its graduate programs offer an outstanding grounding in a wide variety of fields and approaches to biology.  Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program (BMS) and Program in Biological Sciences (PIBS) and are particularly relevant to anyone interested in virology.

UCSF

Several symposia of interest to the virology community are held at UCSF annually: note the Bay Area RNA Club (BARC) and Bay Area Microbial Pathogenesis Symposium (BAMPS).

UCSF boasts an incredibly vigorous seminar series.  Virology topics often come up in the seminars for Immunology and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, & Genetics.

The UCSF-affiliated Gladstone Institute also houses an active virology community.

For information regarding UCSF, contact Leonid Gitlin (leonid.gitlin@ucsf.edu).

Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology

The Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology is a research institute dedicated to the study of virology and immunology with a focus on HIV and AIDS. Founded in April of 1993, GIVI conducts a full range of basic and clinical research on HIV/AIDS, in addition to viruses such as HCV, Epstein-Barr, and CMV.  Our research also encompasses other areas of human health, highlighting our strategy to give scientists the freedom to follow their research wherever it leads. GIVI laboratories are headed by Drs. Warner Greene, Gilad Doitsh, Robert Grant, Nevan Krogan, JJ Miranda, Melanie Ott, Shomyseh Sanjabi, Eric Verdin, and Leor Weinberger. With faculty appointments within UCSF, GIVI Investigators participate in a wide range of university activities such as the Program in Biological Sciences (PIBS) and Biomedical Sciences (BMS) graduate student programs. GIVI Seminars frequent external speakers of renown in the areas of virology and immunology. The numerous resources and rich scientific environment at Gladstone is reflected in the institute’s having been ranked #1 by The Scientist as the best place to work in academia in 2011 and 2012, and illustrates our standing as an excellent place for pre- or postdoctoral training. GIVI has also partnered with UCSF for the federally sponsored UCSF-GIVI Center for AIDS Research (CFAR), which is co-directed by Drs. Warner Greene and Paul Volberding.

For information regarding GIVI, contact Renuka Kumar (renuka.kumar@gladstone.ucsf.edu).

UC Davis

The mission of the University of California, Davis is to advance the human condition through improving the quality of life for all.  This institution uses a framework that connects its land-grant history to a transformative vision for the 21st century with the aim of making global impact in many scientific and social areas.  UC Davis is composed of 4 colleges (Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering, Letters and Science) and 6 professional schools (Education, Law, Management, Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing), with a total number of 33,000 students.   There are 101 undergraduate majors and 90 graduate programs, and many of these are in the biological sciences.  Infectious disease research at UC Davis covers a broad range of pathogens in humans, animals (including invertebrates), and plants, and about 55 faculty members pursue research and teaching in virology.

For information regarding UC Davis, contact Paul Luciw (paluciw@ucdavis.edu).

Resources

The SF Bay Area provides access to a broad array of shared facilities, incubator space, translation opportunities, and specialized training. This web portal provides static listings of resources in the bay area, including lab protocols, software packages, and other tools provided by the community.For a digest of new and transient funding opportunities, jobs, and other resources for virus researchers in the San Francisco bay area, please join our listserv.

To add your resources to this listing please contact Isabelle Charles at i.m.charles@berkeley.edu

Protocols

Bioinformatic Tools

Web based

Software

Affiliated Labs

If you wish to be added to this list, please contact Isabelle Charles at i.m.charles@berkeley.edu with information about your lab.

Point of ContactLab/Research GroupInstitutionDepartmentCurrent ActivitiesAvailable Facilities/Resources
Laurent Coscoy (lcoscoy@berkeley.edu)CoscoyUCBMCBInvestigation the role of Covid E protein in activating a subset of T-cells with innate like propertiesBSL3 lab; alveolar cell line
 CEND Drug Discovery Center / CoxUCBCENDHigh-throughput screening to develop novel therapeutics130000 molecule HTS library; Sample mgt, state-of the art screening systems open to collaboration;
Screening lab BSL2+
 Proteomics Lab/KohlstaedtUCBQB3proteomics, inlcuding quant 
David AuCoin <daucoin@med.unr.edu>Kozel/AuCoin Diagnostics Discovery LabUNRMicro. & ImmunologymAb development, lateral flow immunoassay prototype developmentLateral flow immunoassay prototyping capabilities for the development of rapid diagnostics, hybridoma/mAb development, BSL-3 lab
Kate Pflughoeft <kpflughoeft@dxdiscovery.com>DxDiscoveryDxDiscovery, Inc. (Reno, NV)R&DmAb development, lateral flow immunoassay prototype developmentLateral flow immunoassay prototyping capabilities for the development of rapid diagnostics, hybridoma/mAb development
Dave McIlwain <mcilwain@stanford.edu>Garry Nolan LabStanfordMicro. & immunologyProfiling host responses to infectious disease in humans and NHP models with single cell and tissue imaging techniquesCytometry: CyTOF; High parameter tissue imaging: CODEX, MiBI
Chris Barker <cmbarker@ucdavis.edu> Davis Arbovirus Research and Training (DART) LabUC DavisVet Med: Pathology, Microbiology, & ImmunologyArbovirus diagnostic testing (usually test mosquitoes and dead birds from across CA); not specifically interested in conducting research on COVID19 but could help if high-throughput testing capacity is needed.RNA extraction, RT-qPCR; MagMax, QuantStudio 5 (2 each); BSL-2 & BSL-3
Jimmie Ye(jimmie.ye@ucsf.edu)Jimmie Ye lab/oUCSFDOMsingle cell genetic and genomic studies to understand human immunitysingle cell RNA-sequencing, surface marker and immune repertoire profiling, HPC compute environment
Matt Spitzer (matthew.spitzer@ucsf.edu)Matt Spitzer labUCSFOto/M&Isystems immunology in cancer and infection, human and mouseImmune profiling, CyTOF, data analysis/comp. bio
Bryan Greenhouse (bryan.greenhouse@ucsf.edu)EPPIcenter research group / Greenhouse labUCSFDOMserosurveillance, ab kinetics in Bay Area and potentially Ugandamathmatical modeling, Magpix, phage array, protein microarray, ELISA 
Bin Yu (binyu@stat.berkeley.edu)Yu GroupUCBStatistics and EECS and CCBdata analysis (statistical and machine learning modeling)statistical and machine learning mdoeling
Eluem.Blyden@avrilbiopharma.com Avril BiopharmaProtein ExpressionExpression of Coronavirus proteins ( Spike, M)BSL2 lab; Construct design and construction
Michal Tal (mtal@stanford.edu)Weissman Lab/Tal Research GroupStanfordISCBRMimmune cell studies from human peripheral blood derived macrophages in response to pathogens (borrelia burgdorferi) as well as perturbing immune cells to enhance phagocytic capacity and clearance of tumor lines and bacteriaBSL2+ lab; a multitude of immunoassays; FACS expertise; isolation protocol for >95% pure and viable PBMC subsets from human blood; dedicated group for infectious disease research
Nicole Baumgarth (nbaumgarth@ucdavis.edu)Baumgarth LabUC DavisVet Med: Pathology, Microbiology, & ImmunologyMouse modeling respiratory tract infections (influenza); serology, host response analysisBLS2 and limited BSL-3 lab 
Eluem.Blyden@avrilbiopharma.com Avril BiopharmaComputational GenomicsStructural Genetics analysis of public domain sequence dataCloud computr platform; ML
Sarah McWirther smcwhirter@aduro.com Aduro BiotechAduro BiotechNA Aduro has a large amount of lab space available, willing to take in researchers/help in any capacity
Phil Berman (pwb@soe.ucsc.edu)Berman HIV Vaccine LabUC Santa CruzBiomolecular EngineeringNew technology for the rapid production of stable, high yielding CHO cell lines for the production of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies and glycan controlled vaccine immunogens for GMP production (>1 g/L in about 8weeks)BSL2 + lab, Equipment for 3 L shakeflask cultures, engineered CHO cell lines to restrict glycosylation

engineered CHO cell lines to restrict glycosylation and proteolysis, AKTA purificatioon protein equipment

and proteolysis, AKTA protein purification protein equipment

Experience in writing CMC and Pre-clinical sections of INDs
Sarah McWirther smcwhirter@aduro.com Aduro BiotechAduro BiotechChemistry/Regulatory/Clinical Chemistry expertise around Nucleotides as drugs; Library of Nucleotide-related molecules; clinical /regulatory/ manufacturing
Shirley Pan (shirley.pan@fibulas.com)FibulasCitris FoundrySkydeckhigh fidelity sample preservation. We have medical grade technologies, products, lab and manufacturing facility which makes it possible for us to research and iterate efficiently. (We have products for swab samples, blood samples and other primary human cell/tissue samples)1) Sample collection preservation products, including: cryopreservation kits, sample swabs, viral preservation medium and containers, and other types of sample collection sets;

2) COVID-19 IgM Rapid Testing Kit (Chinese Official NMPA Approval)

3) COVID-19 Test PCR Reagent Kits (Chinese Official NMPA Approval)

4) SARS-COV-2 Artificial Viral Particle
Nevan Krogan; Kirsten Obernier (kirsten.obernier@ucsf.edu)QBI Coronavirus Research Group (QCRG); about 25 labs at UCSFUCSFQuantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI)QCRG, a newly formed research group at UCSF of over 25 laboratoris, is useing a combination of mass spectrometry, CRISPR-based genetics and structural analysis through Cryo-EM to understand how SARS-CoV-2 hijacks human cells for its own replication and to rapidly develop treatments - activities in brief: Protein-protein interaction maps of SARS-CoV-2 and human proteins for identification of host-dependency/restriction factors and novel drug targets - Affinity purification Mass Spec of all SARS-CoV-2 proteins and their host cell interactors; structural analysis (cryoEM, X-crystallography, XL-MS) of complexes, host factors, viral proteins; integrative modeling; docking studies; CRISPR-mediated functional genomics; drug screeningMass Specs, CryoEM, constructs for each SARS-CoV-2 encoded protein, capabilities for large docking studies, etc
Parijat Bhatnagar (Parijat.Bhatnagar@sri.com)Parijat BhatnagarSRI InternationalBiosciencesEngineering T cells for targeting viral diseasesT-cell engineering (e..g CAR T cells), in vitro BSL3
Shirit Einav (seinav@stanford.edu)EinavStanfordMedicine and Microbiology/ImmunologyScreening for antiviralsAccess to a BSL3 facility for in vitro and in vivo work via a collaborator at GMU
Anitha Jayaprakash Girihlet Inc TCR seqeuncing, alpha/beta, single cells, bulk. can sequence covid samples free of cost, have a nextseq anyone wants to access is welcome. The Oakland Genomics Center has BSL2 facilty and work benches. 
Michael Eckart (meckart@stanford.edu)Shared ResourceStanfordCMGMProviding Genomic and protein analystical servicesOligo synthesis; Sanger DNA Sequencing/Fragment Analysis; qPCR; Peptide synthesis; SPR (Biacore)
Naresh Sunkara (naresh@berkeley.edu) UC Berkeley At UC Berkeley, we are about to launch a major effort to establish a make-shift CLIA grade testing center. Volunteers will be trained under CLS standards with appropriate safety measures., we are trying to see the interest levels of grad students and postdocs in helping expand the testing capabilities around the country. Procedures like rRT-PCR and working in BSL-2/3 labs is a routine in university and national labs. We believe that if we can have trained volunteers to assist carry out assays, we can expand our testing capabilities exponentially. Please signup if you think you would be able to help out. Sign Up Here 
Diego Rey (diego@rey.bio)NARocheDiagnosticsLab space may be available for use (e.g. testing, kitting)10,000+ sqft BSL2 lab
Melanie Ott (melanie.ott@gladstone.ucsf.edu)Ott LabUCSFVirology & ImmunologyDeveloping rapid, POC diagnostics; infection of primary lung organoids for scRNA-seq/compound screening/CRISPR screening; expression constructs of SARS-CoV-2 proteins for functional screensBSL3; viral protein library
Lark Coffey (lcoffey@ucdavis.edu)Davis Arbovirus Research and TrainingUC DavisPathology, Microbiology and ImmunologyInterested in sequencing and potentially infectious virus work in cells and or small animal modelsBSL-2 space, 2 BSL-3 facilities including ABSL-3, RT-qPCR, deep sequencing
Lisa Diamond (lisa.diamond@pinpointscience.com)Bay Genomics labPinpoint Science Inc.DiagnosticsPrototyping and validating 30-second handheld Covid-19 test based on novel nanosensor technology derived from Pourmand lab work at UC Santa Cruz. BSL2 lab
Rebecca DuBois (rmdubois@ucsc.edu)Protein EngineeringUC Santa CruzBiomolecular engineeringSubunit vaccines, virus antigen-antibody structuresRecombinant protein production, BSL-2
Reza Abbasi-Asl (Reza.AbbasiAsl@ucsf.edu)Abbasi LabUCSFNeurologyComputational modeling and machine learningComputational support and modleing based on machine learning principles
Lyndsay MurrowGartner LabUCSFPharmaceutical Chemistrysingle cell studies to understand cell communities and tissuesMULTI-Seq reagents for sample multiplexing of scRNAseq experiments
Bonnie Kim (bonnie@codexdna.com)CODEX-DNA (formerly known as SGI-DNA)  COVID research resources - available at https://codexdna.com/pages/sars-cov-2-tools1. SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic RNA controls
2. SARS-CoV-2 antigen panels
3. SARS-CoV-2 antibody libraries
4. SARS-CoV-2 spike protein DNA vaccine construct
5. SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine scaffold
6. SARS-CoV-2 live attenuated vaccine scaffold
7. SARS-CoV-2 synthetic DNA parts
8. SARS-CoV-2 full length, synthetic genome
9. BioXp 3200
Projects

Projects coming soon! If you have a project you would like to feature, please reach out to Isabelle Charles at i.m.charles@berkeley.edu

Upcoming Events

VIRTUAL Coronavirus Diagnostic Hackathon – March 25th and 26th

Many events in the Bay Area have been cancelled due to the current threat of the covid-19 pandemic.

If you have an event you would like to advertise, please reach out to Isabelle Charles at i.m.charles@berkeley.edu

Questions

Who is included in the Bay Area Viruses Network?

The bayviro.org web platform features profiles of more than 40 research labs and programs located in the San Francisco bay area. These include academic investigator labs, as well as research programs at local companies, government agencies (like the Department of Energy National Labs), and non-profit research institutes. In addition, bayviro.org maintains a listserv with more than 400 subscribers.

How can I join the network?

The first step in joining BayViro is to sign up for our listserv. The list provides a digest of upcoming events, funding opportunities, and jobs for virus researchers in the San Francisco bay area. Members are invited to share notices and other information with the broader network by contacting Isabelle Charles at i.m.charles@berkeley.ed, who maintains the listserv.

Who runs the network?

We are a community-organized resource maintained by scientists at UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UCSF, and Stanford University. Researchers on each campus collect information to disseminate to the broader network. Our events are organized by staff and volunteers at each university.

How was the Bay Area Virus Network established?

Bayviro was launched in 2012, after a successful first meeting of nearly 400 virus researchers in the San Francisco bay area. At the meeting, a need was identified for a portal to link researchers with scientific resources, potential collaborators, and event listings in the Northern California region. The network was established by the Henry Wheeler Center for Emerging and Neglected Diseases at UC Berkeley, with support from our sponsors.