My lab is interested in novel antiviral drugs that can be used to combat important viral diseases and as chemical tools to address basic research questions. We are investigating HIV-1 maturation inhibitors, which have a novel mechanism of action as they target the HIV-1 Gag protein. In recent work we have used an analogue series of the maturation inhibitor PF-46396 to dissect structure-activity relationships. A second major research interest is to determine if fundamental knowledge about viral interferon antagonist function can be leveraged into translational research to impact the treatment of viral diseases. To do this we have developed a novel cell-based screening platform that allows us to target a viral interferon antagonist of choice. We have successfully used this assay to identify hit molecules that specifically inhibit Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) NS2.