Wolfram Brune

Prof. Dr. Wolfram Brune is Deputy Scientific Director and Head of the Research Department on Virus-Host Interaction at the Leibniz Institute of Virology (LIV), University of Hamburg. His research focuses on cytomegalovirus-host interactions, including mechanisms of immune evasion, programmed cell death inhibition, and host species specificity.

• Key areas: Viral inhibition of apoptosis/necroptosis/pyroptosis, stress response modulation, and antiviral target discovery
• Current projects: Decoding host dependency factors, developing herpesvirus BAC systems, and analyzing glycoprotein variants in viral tropism

Recent publications highlight his work on viral phase-separated compartments, BAC mutagenesis, and host restriction factors like Pkr. Collaborations with institutions like UKE Hamburg and Umeå University emphasize translational virology.

Techniques employed include BAC genome engineering, CRISPR-Cas screening, and in vivo infection models. His team has contributed to antiviral drug development and cross-species transmission studies.