Biology Department Seminar | Arvind Varsani, Assistant Professor, Arizona State University | Short stories on DNA viruses from the tropics to polar regions: ecology and evolution

Brief abstract:
Over the last decade, primarily because of high throughput sequencing, a large number of viruses have been identified in various ecosystems. Within this context, it is not surprising that a significantly large number of DNA viruses have discovered from various sources ranging from water samples of lakes and oceans to fecal and tissue samples of various animals, large and small. With all these discoveries, comes broader questions on the diversity, evolution and perhaps more critical the role of these viruses in these ecosystems. In this talk I will provide insights, through short stories, of on various small DNA viruses that my group is working from the tropics to the polar regions.