Miss Saskia Stenzel

Biography

Saskia Stenzel obtained her BSc in Biology at the Freie Universität of Berlin in 2018, working on multi-resistant staphylococcus aureus. She progressed onto a master’s focussing on molecular and cell biology including courses for immunology and virology, which sparked an interest in infectious diseases and specifically viruses. In 2019, Saskie started a research internship in Prof. Christine Goffinet’s lab working on HIV-1 latency reversal. Due to the pandemic and the urgent need for research in the field of human pathogenic coronaviruses, she continued with a master’s project on SARS-CoV-2 and the susceptibility to innate immune response factors. After completing her master’s in 2021, she started a PhD in Prof. Goffinet’s group. Currently, Sakia is working as a Research Assistant in the department of Tropical Disease Biology, at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

Research interests

Using complex lung cell models, functional assays and reverse genetics, Saskia’s current research focuses on investigating the efficiency and characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 transmission modes: cell-free virus particle transmission and direct cell-to-cell contact transmission. Understanding these modes is crucial for developing effective therapeutic strategies and vaccines, as cell-to-cell transmission may accelerate viral spread and aid in immune evasion, especially in cell-dense respiratory tissues.

Selected research publications

A recent gibbon ape leukemia virus germline integration in a rodent from New Guinea – Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America – Published: 1st February 2024

Pharmacological inhibition of bromodomain and extra-terminal proteins induces an NRF-2-mediated antiviral state that is subverted by SARS-CoV-2 infection – Journal: PLoS Pathogens – Published: 25th September 2023

SARS-CoV-2 variant Alpha has a spike-dependent replication advantage over the ancestral B.1 strain in human cells with low ACE2 expression – Journal: PLoS Biology – Published: 1st November 2022

Human IFITM3 restricts chikungunya virus and Mayaro virus infection and is susceptible to virus-mediated counteraction – Journal: Life Science Alliance – Published: 1st July 2021

Staphylococcus aureus uses the bacilliredoxin (BrxAB)/bacillithiol disulfide reductase (YpdA) redox pathway to defend against oxidative stress under infections – Journal: Frontiers in Microbiology – Published: 1st January 2019

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