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For those interested, Mikayla elected to join UTSW Graduate school where I predict she will have an outstanding PhD!

Mikayla inserted the small HiBiT tag into the MNV genome. The HiBiT fragment can complement with the LgBiT fragment and form a functional nanoluciferase. She showed that this works in cell lysates and tissue lysates with great dynamic range and sensitivity. No need for engineered cell lines!

We have found the MNV-HiBiT viruses excellent and faithful reporters of MNV replication. We highly recommend this system for its speed, fidelity, and robust readouts! We also have had great success generating other viruses with HiBiT insertions, so worth a try in your favorite virus as well.

Excited to have this story published @plosbiology.org. We were surprised to find lipids are important for entry of a non-enveloped virus and that TMEM30a is important for enteric infection of murine norovirus!

Beyond excited to be selected for the 2026 BWF Path Award. Thanks to my mentors for their support. A special thanks to the trainees in my group who help make this possible. Just overjoyed by the news!!!

Mikayla did all of this while part of the UT Southwestern-Postbaccalaureate to PhD (PB2PHD) Program. I highly recommend those that want to go to graduate school but need more experience (both bench and coursework) to consider PB2PHD! Thanks @ajdiazphd.bsky.social for leadership on the PB2PHD

Excited to share the work of Mikayla Olson in the lab making a replication competent reporter virus for murine norovirus. journals.plos.org/plospathogen...

Faculty search announcement 2025: Tenure-Track Assistant Professor in Microbiology at UT Southwestern. We seek candidates working in microbial pathogenesis (some preference may be given to bacterial pathogens). Come join our community! (1/5) www.utsouthwestern.edu/departments/...

Further reading to the great talk from @orchardlab.bsky.social just now at #GRCviruses Membrane asymmetry facilitates MNV entry and persistent infection @plosbiology.org #Virosky 🧪 journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

Valerie Rodriguez Irizarry’s tour de force paper on murine norovirus adaptation/egress is now out in peer-reviewed form ‪@plosbiology.org‬. It highlights the power of forward genetics in virology research. 🧵 1/10 journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

May 27, 2025