Arvind Varsani

Arvind Varsani is a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University (ASU), with affiliations to the Biodesign Center for Fundamental & Applied Microbiomics, the Center for Evolution and Medicine, and the Central Arizona-Phoenix Long Term Ecological Research program. He holds the title of Senior Global Futures Scientist within the Global Futures Scientists and Scholars initiative.

He earned a Ph.D. in Molecular Virology from the University of Cape Town (South Africa) and a B.Sc. in Biological Sciences from Loughborough University (England). His research focuses on molecular virology, viral evolution, and ecosystem dynamics, utilizing advanced techniques like transmission electron microscopy, next-generation sequencing, and bioinformatics to study viral diversity across plants, animals, and extreme environments such as Antarctica.

Varsani’s work emphasizes understanding viral dynamics in ecosystems, particularly in the Ross Sea Antarctic ecosystem, and explores how climate change impacts viral evolutionary trajectories. His lab investigates viral interactions within microbiomes, phytobiomes, and avian systems, with notable collaborations on circoviruses in penguins and viral surveillance in wildlife. He has pioneered studies on viral metagenomics, geminivirus recombination, and anellovirus evolution, contributing to ICTV taxonomy updates.

Key projects include tracking viral emergence via wastewater surveillance, studying Antarctic viral communities, and analyzing viral diversity in birds, marine mammals, and insects. His research outputs span over 200 publications, highlighting discoveries in bacteriophage ecology, Antarctic virus dynamics, and One Health approaches to viral threats.