Research Interests
Molecular virology, RNA biology, hepatitis C virus, microRNAs, miR-122, Zika virus, dengue virus, RNA structure
Research Focus Teams
COVID
Departments
Contact
Email: Selena.sagan@ubc.ca
Office Phone: 604–822–9149
Publications
Lab Website
Dr. Sagan is a Professor and Co-director of the Prepare for Pandemics through Advanced Research in Evolution (PrePARE) Research Cluster (https://www.microbiology.ubc.ca/prepare) in the Department of Microbiology & Immunology at the University of British Columbia (UBC). As an undergrad at McGill University, she became fascinated by viral proteins which disrupt host antiviral responses. Dr. Sagan then obtained her Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology at the University of Ottawa, where she focused on the development of protein- and RNA-based tools to study small-interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and interrogate target site accessibility in large, highly-structured RNAs (such as the genomes of positive-sense RNA viruses). For her postdoctoral training, she became interested in Hepatitis C virus and (mi)RNA biology as well as genome-wide approaches to study protein-RNA interactions and RNA secondary structures. In 2013, Dr. Sagan started her own independent research group at McGill University, studying positive-sense RNA viruses of the Flaviviridae family (including hepatitis C virus, dengue and Zika viruses) as well as respiratory viruses (including respiratory syncytial virus and human coronaviruses). In 2023, Dr. Sagan’s research group moved to the University of British Columbia, where her research program focuses on RNA-RNA and protein-RNA interactions at the host-virus interface.
2024 – 2026 President of the Canadian Society for Virology (CSV)
2023 Co-Director, Prepare for Pandemics through Advanced Research in Evolution (PrePARE) Research Cluster
2022 – 2024 Vice-President of the Canadian Society for Virology (CSV)
2016 – 2023 Canada Research Chair (Tier II), RNA Biology and Viral Infections 2015 – 2016 Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) New Investigator Award
Hepatitis C virus, dengue and Zika viruses are positive-sense RNA viruses of public health concern. Our lab uses state-of-the art molecular biology, biochemistry, and high-throughput approaches to investigate RNA-RNA and protein-RNA interactions important for regulation of viral gene expression, replication, immune evasion, and pathogenesis. Our research will aid in improving our understanding of how these positive-sense RNA viruses usurp the host cell, replicate their genomes, and cause disease. We hope to gain insight into RNA regulation and identify novel avenues for antiviral intervention.
We currently have multiple projects focused on improving our understanding of how viruses establish infections, how they build viral replication organelles, and how they assemble viral particles. We rely on multidisciplinary approaches and our expertise and tools in classical molecular virology, RNA biology, and reverse genetics.
Ultimately, we want to understand how viruses make viral proteins, build replication factories, and put together infectious virions so that we can find ways to stop them!
For more information: www.saganlab.com