We are interested in tumor viruses and how they control cell proliferation. Our research focuses on the papillomaviruses, a group of small DNA viruses that transform cells in culture and play an important role in several forms of human cancer. We hope that our studies will shed new light onto the mechanisms of cell growth control and also suggest new approaches to treat human cancer. We are also exploiting the mechanisms used by these viruses, to develop new approaches to manipulate cell behavior. Finally, we are studying infection by the polyomaviruses, another group of small DNA tumor viruses, and have identified a number of cellular genes required for infection, as well as chemicals that block infection.