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Wales Applied Virology Unit

About us

The Wales Applied Virology Unit launched on 1 April 2025 after receiving £3 million in funding from Health and Care Research Wales.

Aims

The Wales Applied Virology Unit (WAVU) aims to reduce the burden of viral disease through the development and evaluation of intervention and control strategies.

We intend to meet the needs of tomorrow’s patients through the delivery of next-generation advanced therapeutics, from enhanced vaccines to combat infectious disease and cancer, to engineered viral platforms for oncology and genome-editing applications.

This will be achieved using interdisciplinary expertise comprising basic and translational virology, clinical trials, public health epidemiology, and implementation science, to generate solutions in the field of viral disease, leading to more efficient research and improved care for patients and the public.

Research

Our research areas are:

DNA

Basic virology

Virology is the scientific study of the fundamental properties of viruses, including their structure, classification, evolution, and methods of replication.

Virus covid

Translational virology

The “bench-to-bedside” scientific process of taking basic laboratory research on viruses and applying it to develop real-world medical solutions, such as vaccines.

Heart

Viral epidemiology and practice

The study of how viral infections spread, distribute, and behave within populations.