Katherine Luzuriaga, MD, is a Filipino American scientist and physician on the cutting edge of research on how viruses like HIV and the Epstein Barr virus infect children Via UMass medical school

Dr. Luzuriaga is an internationally-renowned physician-scientist who uses scientific investigation to improve human health. Her laboratory research focuses on understanding how viruses, including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Epstein Barr virus (EBV), establish persistent viral infections in children. Viral pathogenesis studies have defined the genetic and biologic properties of viruses that initiate infection and evolve over time following infection; immunopathogenesis studies characterized the role of virus-specific CD8+ T cells in controlling viral replication or evolution of the viral quasispecies. Dr. Luzuriaga has developed early diagnostic methods for pediatric HIV infection, led the first clinical trials of nevirapine in children, and conducted Phase I studies of several other antiretroviral therapies (ART) labelled for pediatric use. Having led the first early combination ART trials in infants, she is now focused on characterizing residual HIV reservoirs in individuals on ART to inform the development of strategies to achieve remission.

Dr. Luzuriaga has served since 2012 as Director of the University of Massachusetts Center for Clinical and Translational Science (UMCCTS). In this capacity, she provides strategic, administrative, and financial oversight of all UMCCTS cores, programs, and educational programs. As UMMS Vice Provost for Clinical and Translational Research, Dr. Luzuriaga has led strategic planning and provides administrative and financial oversight of the UMMS clinical and translational research enterprise, including the Office of Clinical Research, the Clinical Research Center, and the IRB. Working with UMass and UMMS leadership, faculty, and a broad range of partners, Dr. Luzuriaga and the UMCCTS team have built an ecosystem that capitalizes on UMass scientific strengths and partnerships with the CTSA network to advance the science of translation, high-impact clinical and translational research, and workforce development. This ecosystem has fostered the development of new trans-disciplinary initiatives, examples of which include the UMass Center for Microbiome Research and Massachusetts Medical Device Development (M2D2). Highly committed to training the next generation of clinicians and scientists, Dr. Luzuriaga served as the Founding Director of the NIH CTSA-funded UMCCTS KL2 program, which has served as a prototype for additional institutional KL2 programs.