Vanshika Patel
3rd year PhD student, Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program
Dual-title PhD student, Clinical and Translational Sciences
Biography
BS, Biomedical Sciences, SUNY College at Plattsburgh, 2019
MS, Biomedical Sciences, Eastern Virginia Medical School, 2023
Lab affiliation (Department): Dr. Chris Norbury (Cell and Biological Systems)
Research project: Vanshika Patel is a Ph.D. graduate student in Biomedical Sciences with dual-title in Clinical and Translational Sciences at Penn State College of Medicine. She investigates how large DNA viruses, including human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and poxviruses, hijack host uptake processes and endosomal transport to initiate infection. She is particularly interested in macropinocytosis and vesicular transport mechanisms that impact viral entry, immune recognition, and antigen presentation. Her graduate work centers on describing prominent viral and host factors that regulate such processes, finally to define new therapeutic strategies to avoid viral infection and persistence. Outside of graduate school, Vanshika has a solid background in molecular biology, microbiology, and translational research and is specifically interested in bridging laboratory findings and clinical application to help enable patient-centered care.