mSphere of Influence: the Value of Simplicity in Experiments and Solidarity among Lab Members

Nicholas Wallace studies how human papillomaviruses cause cancer throughout the genital and oropharyngeal tracts as well as in the skin. These viruses inhibit host DNA repair to promote their life style and in doing increase the risk of oncogenic mutations. In this mSphere of Influence article, he reflects on how two papers influenced him. “Human Papillomaviruses Activate the ATM DNA Damage Pathway for Viral Genome Amplification upon Differentiation” by C. A. Moody and L. Laimins (PLoS Pathog 5:e10000605, 2009, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1000605) reminded him of the power of straightforward approaches, while “Forty-Five Years of Cell-Cycle Genetics” by B. Reid et al. (B. J. Reid, J. G. Culotti, R. S. Nash, and J. R. Pringle, Mol Biol Cell 26:4307–4312, 2015, https://doi.org/10.1091/mbc.E14-10-1484) gave him the inspiration for his lab management style.