Gary R. Whittaker, PhD
Gary Whittaker is a Professor of Virology in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the College of Veterinary Medicine. He is Section Chief of the Infectious Disease Epidemiology MPH Program and a member of the Feline Health Center. The Whittaker Lab studies the structure and function of viral envelope proteins. The lab focuses on how genomic mutations lead to changes in the envelope proteins and control viral pathogenesis in influenza viruses and coronaviruses including SARS-CoV, SARS-CoV2, MERS-CoV and feline coronaviruses. Research also extends into therapeutics, vaccines, and diagnostic test development. Funding is provided by research grants from the Cornell Feline Health Center, EveryCat Health Foundation, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
Dr Whittaker’s CVM site is here
Ximena Andrea Olarte-Castillo, Dr. rer. nat
Ximena Olarte-Castillo is a microbiologist and virologist specializing in genomics. She has her doctorate degree from Humbolt University in Berlin. Her research focuses on the genetic changes associated with the development of FIP in cats and discovery and characterization on novel viruses in animal species.
Ambika Pachaury
Ambika is a biomedical engineering third year PhD student in the Daniel Lab. She collaborates with the Whittaker lab to understand the role of the highly conserved amino acids of the SARS CoV-2 fusion peptide and its interaction with the host cell membrane.
Beth Licitra, DVM, PhD
Beth Licitra is a staff veterinarian in the Cornell University Hospital for Animals (CUHA). She earned her PhD degree in the Whittaker lab in 2015 researching feline and canine coronaviruses. Her clinical focus is in small animal urgent care and her research interests are in infectious disease. Her current work for the lab is focused on new antemortem tests for FIP.
Bailey Lubinski
Bailey is a 4th year PhD candidate in the Biomedical and Biological Sciences Program, and she mainly focuses on the proteolytic cleavage of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. In her research, she examines the impacts of mutations near the S1/S2 site on cleavage level, fusogenicity, and cell entry. She occasionally works on other human coronaviruses as well and is also developing a project involving dengue virus.
Alyssa Morse
Alysa Morse is currently studying for a masters of public health with a focus on the epidemiology of infectious diseases. She has a Bachelors of Science (B.S) in Interdisciplinary Studies from Michicgan State University.
Logan Watkins
Logan is currently in the masters of public health program, with a focus on the epidemiology of infectious disease at Cornell University. She has a Bachelors of Arts degree in Biology and Sociology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Logan’s current research is focusing on the conjunctiva as a potential feline coronavirus transmission route.
Annette Choi
Annette is currently a graduate student in from the Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology. She was recently awarded the Liz Hanson Studentship in Feline Medicine from the College of Veterinary Medicine, to investigate FIP antivirals.
Wendy Wingate
Wendy Wingate is the Whittaker Lab Manager. She also manages communication for the FCoV Study.