Rate My Professor Felicia Goodrum

Goodrum's research investigates the intricate virus-host interactions that enable DNA viruses, particularly human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), to persist asymptomatically through lifelong latency and controlled reactivation. Her laboratory employs HCMV as a prototype betaherpesvirus to dissect molecular mechanisms governing viral gene expression, genome integrity via host DNA repair pathways, innate immune signaling, sterol metabolism via liver X receptors, and cell differentiation states in diverse cell types such as hematopoietic progenitors, endothelial, and epithelial cells. Pioneering studies from her group established models of HCMV latency in primary cells and identified key viral determinants like UL136 isoforms and UL138. Seminal publications include "Human cytomegalovirus gene expression during infection of primary hematopoietic progenitor cells: a model for latency" (2002, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) and "Liver X Receptor-Inducible Host E3 Ligase IDOL Targets a Human Cytomegalovirus Reactivation Determinant" (2023, Journal of Virology). Her contributions have profoundly influenced virology, earning recognition through the Howard Temin Award (National Cancer Institute), Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences Award, Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, NIH MERIT Award, Edith Sayre Auslander Emerging Visionary Award (2022), University of Arizona Women of Impact Award (2023), and election as a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. Goodrum served as Past-President of the American Society for Virology (2021-2022) and was appointed Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Virology in 2022. She actively advocates for science communication and policy.