The past two years have shown every single one of us how culture, behaviour and even our interactions with the natural world can influence the spread of infection. Dr Richard Sloan’s job is to learn what infections that ‘go viral’ have in common. In the first of the 2021/2022 series of Research Insights, Richard is joined by Dr Aaron Trent-Irving to explore the origins of viruses that have shaped our lives and how similarities between them could help scientists pinpoint potential sources of future pandemics. Hosted by Hazel Lambert.

Dr Richard Sloan teaches undergraduate students in Edinburgh and China about infectious diseases and how the body responds. In the lab, his research is focused on we can control viral infections such as HIV and the virus that causes Covid-19.

 Dr Aaron Trent-Irving runs a lab at Zhejiang University-Edinburgh University Joint Institute, China, where he looks at viruses that can infect bats and humans. He also teaches undergraduate students.