People

Marta Maria Gaglia (she/her) – Associate Professor, Institute for Molecular Virology and Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology; Member, Carbone Cancer Center

Marta grew up in Torino, Italy, and lived in Trieste, Italy and London, UK, before moving across the pond to do her graduate studies with Cynthia Kenyon at UCSF and her postdoctoral training with Britt Glaunsinger at UC Berkeley. After ~11 years in California, she moved to Boston to start her own lab at Tufts University School of Medicine in 2014. She and the lab moved to Madison and University of Wisconsin in fall 2022. In her free time, she reads fantasy and mystery novels, plays board games, makes paper flowers, does yoga and goes on snorkeling holidays.

Alessandra Setaro – Graduate student in the Immunology program at Tufts University

Ali grew up in Connecticut and obtained a BA in biology with a minor in public health from Boston University. During college, Ali studied the pathway of maternal serotonin to the embryo and fetus under Dr. Harvey Kliman in the Reproductive and Placental Research Unit. After graduating from college, Ali was a research assistant in Dr. Michael Seaman’s lab in the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, working on clinical trials for HIV/AIDS vaccines and therapies, as well as COVID-19 vaccines. Pursuing an interest in viruses and host pathogen interactions, Ali joined the Gaglia Lab to explore the role of the influenza protein PA-X on the host innate immune response, and moved with Marta to UW. In their free time, Ali enjoys visiting botanical gardens, going to museums, and learning new recipes.

Alexia Meléndez Rivera – Research intern

Alexia grew up in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and earned her B.S. in Microbiology from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus. After graduating, she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where she is completing a postbaccalaureate research program in the Gaglia Lab, studying influenza A virus. In her free time, Alexia enjoys crocheting, watching comfort shows, and spending time with her cats.

Aubrey Behling – UW-Madison undergraduate student

Aubrey is a sophomore at UW–Madison majoring in Genetics & Genomics with a certificate in Gender and Women’s Studies. She originates from a small town, Edgar, in central Wisconsin. She is currently working under Corinne’s mentorship studying the effects of the influenza A protein, PA-X, on host inflammation and immunity. After graduation, Aubrey plans to attend medical school. In her free time, she enjoys baking, traveling, scuba-diving, and thrifting.

Autumn Sanders – Graduate student in the Microbiology Doctoral Training Program at UW-Madison

Autumn grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and attended the University of Minnesota. She majored in microbiology and minored in public health and teaching English as a second language. As an undergraduate, she worked in Dr. Tyler Bold’s lab, studying the pathology of tuberculous meningitis. After she graduated, she worked in Dr. Ryan Langlois’ lab, studying mouse models for testing vaccines and the transmission of viruses between species. In Dr. Marta Gaglia’s lab, she is studying the innate immune response to Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus. When she’s not in the lab, she likes to read, do yoga, go thrifting, and try out breweries, coffee shops, and restaurants.

Charles Hesser – Scientist

Charles grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended UC San Diego for his BS and MS degrees before moving to UC Berkeley for his doctoral research, where he studied Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus lytic reactivation with Britt Glaunsinger. He then moved to Northwestern University in Chicago for his postdoctoral training with Derek Walsh studying how vaccinia virus counteracts host antiviral responses. In October 2023, he moved to Madison to continue his postdoctoral training in the Gaglia Lab. In his free time, he enjoys swimming, biking, hiking, going to the gym, and reading/watching detective series.

Corinne Thomas – Graduate student in the Microbiology Doctoral Training Program at UW-Madison

Corinne grew up in the swamps of Tampa, Florida. She attended the University of South Florida where she majored in Cell & Molecular Biology and minored in Chemistry. After graduating, Corinne completed a post-bacc in Bruce Torbett’s lab at the University of Washington. There, she worked on a lentiviral screen for host interactors with the HIV Gag protein. Currently, she studies the effects of the influenza A protein, PA-X, on host inflammation and immunity. Outside of the lab, Corinne enjoys taking naps, getting food with friends, and reading.

Cynthia Feng – Graduate student in the Microbiology Doctoral Training Program at UW-Madison

Cynthia relocated to Madison from Canada, where she grew up in Mississauga and completed her undergrad and Master’s at McGill University in Montreal. She spent a few years working in curriculum development for undergraduate science students and in medical communications for healthcare industries before pursuing a PhD in the Gaglia Lab studying influenza virus. Outside of the lab, Cynthia is enjoying exploring her new city through indie bookstores, weekend brunch, hiking trails, and live concerts.

Deepak Kumar – Scientist

Deepak comes from Rishikesh, a small town located in the foothills of the Himalaya in India. He attended GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar for his BVSc & AH and MS in Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology. He then worked as a faculty in Veterinary Public Health at College of Veterinary Science, Tripura University and Pantnagar University in India. Prior to his PhD, he worked on characterizing antimicrobial resistance in foodborne bacterial pathogens. He then moved to Kansas State University (KSU) to pursue his PhD with Dr. Douglas Marthaler studying swine viruses and viral phylogenetics. His PhD research focused on developing recombinant protein based indirect ELISAs and investigating antibody response to Rotavirus A and C in swine. He continued his postdoctoral training at KSU characterizing Japanese encephalitis virus antigens for swine vaccine and reverse genetics system for African swine fever virus. In Gaglia lab, he works with Kaposi’s sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV). His hobbies include fishing, playing volleyball and spending time with his kids.

Delaney Malone – UW-Madison undergraduate student

Delaney is a sophomore undergrad majoring in Biology with a certificate in Business Spanish at UW-Madison studying KSHV in the lab. She is from Elk Grove Village, IL and in her free time enjoys reading, going on walks on the Lakeshore path, and watching movies.

Guillermo Najarro (he/him) – Postdoctoral researcher

Guillermo was born and raised in California. He is a first-generation Salvadoran college graduate who received his Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Molecular Biology from the University of California, Merced. Right after college, he pursued and obtained his Ph.D. in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Specifically, his PhD work in Dr. Carolina Arias’s group focused on exploring the modulation of the cells’ Unfolded Protein Response in the context of Kaposi’s Sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Marta Gaglia’s lab, where he continues his training as a virologist. His hobbies include gaming, music, reading, walking, gym, and writing.

Hannah DeRungs – UW-Madison undergraduate student

Hannah is a Junior majoring in Biology with certificates in Global Health and Leadership. She is from Minnesota and enjoys being outside, bubble tea, and dinosaurs. She is also very passionate about travelling, and recently, she spent 5 weeks in India for a global internship! Someday, she hopes to attend medical school and also pursue a Master’s degree in Public Health. In the lab, she studies PA-X protein stability and degradation in the Influenza A virus.

Lindsay Peters – UW-Madison undergraduate student

Lindsay is a second year undergraduate student with a major in Genetics & Genomics and certificates in Science Communication and Health & Humanities. She grew up in the Twin Cities north metro and spent many summers visiting her grandparents in central Wisconsin. She joined the lab as an undergraduate researcher where she studies Kaposi’s Sarcoma-associated herpesvirus. Her hobbies include Nordic skiing, hiking, cooking, and going to concerts.