John T. McCrone, PhD

Dr. John “JT" McCrone is a microbiologist and immunologist specializing in virus evolution. He studies rapidly mutating viruses such as influenza and SARS-CoV-2 — the virus responsible for COVID-19 — by tracking their genetic changes as these microbes move among different environments and populations around the globe. His team combs through large data sets to consider how factors such as viral mutations, social restrictions and mobility patterns affect the spread of infections. Dr. McCrone has developed computational tools and visualization techniques to assess the relative contributions of these factors in the COVID-19 pandemic and will apply these tools in ongoing efforts to respond to it and future outbreaks of viral disease.