Dr. Matthew Weitzman

Biography

Matthew D. Weitzman, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on understanding the cellular host responses to viral infections and the manipulation of viruses. By employing integrated experimental approaches, he studies various viruses through the lens of biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, and cell biology. His work sheds light on the dynamic interactions between viral genetic material and host defense strategies, which has significant implications for developing effective viral vectors for gene therapy. Matthew's lab examines how viruses hijack cellular machinery for their replication and how host cells respond with defense mechanisms that create obstacles to infection. He is particularly interested in the interactions between viruses and DNA repair pathways within host cells, which are crucial for maintaining genomic integrity amid viral assaults. His ongoing projects emphasize DNA damage responses due to viral infections, the roles of ubiquitin ligases encoded by viruses, and the epigenetic changes that occur during these interactions. His studies target a range of viruses, including Adenovirus, Herpes Simplex Virus, and Adeno-Associated Virus, to unveil the sophisticated cellular processes involved in combating viral genome threats.

Research Interests