Dr. Harris is studying the molecular virology and pathogenesis of dengue virus, which causes the most prevalent arthropod-borne diseases of humans worldwide. One line of research involves investigating the regulation of dengue virus replication, defining sequence determinants critical for viral translation and RNA synthesis and identifying cellular and/or viral factors that interact with specific viral sequences. Increasing our understanding of these basic mechanisms will furnish knowledge useful for the development of therapeutics and vaccines for dengue fever and potentially other flaviviral diseases. She has also developed long-term collaborations with dengue-endemic countries in Latin America and is establishing a link between molecular pathogenesis research and field epidemiologic studies -- taking advantage of these scientific collaborations to advance both basic and applied aspects of DV research and to train developing country scientists and foster investigation on-site..