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What's Your Story?
Every couple of months, we feature a short bio from one of our trainees. The full interview, along with archived stories appear here.
Annabel Anyang
(May 2025)
I’ve always been fascinated by stories—how they connect us, teach us, and reveal truths about ourselves and the world we live in. But the most compelling stories I’ve encountered aren’t found in books, television shows, or movies. Instead, they’re written in the molecular and biochemical mechanisms of viruses. These microscopic storytellers have shaped my journey from veterinary medicine to virology, taking me from the vibrant West African hub of Nigeria to the rugged Mountain West beauty of Utah. Back in veterinary school, zoonotic diseases shared between animals and humans like Lassa fever and rabies weren’t just textbook cases or abstract lecture topics studied in class. They were tangible threats that could upend entire communities. Remembering poultry farms ravaged by avian influenza and rural communities haunted by stray rabid dogs, my experiences left an indelible mark. I was especially intrigued by the phenomenon of viral zoonoses, which describes how a virus could jump from infecting wild animals to infecting humans, defying the barriers between species. This sparked my desire to further understand viruses, spillover events, and our connection, as humans, to these phenomena through a One Health perspective, a framework that recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health. Ultimately, this has led me to pursue a PhD investigating viral evolution where I could explore the mechanisms that allow zoonotic viruses to adapt and spread between species.