Samantha Zepeda Ph.D.

Bio

Samantha Zepeda is a biochemist and structural biologist with a background in protein biochemistry, biophysics, and virology. She earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the University of Washington, studying the structure of bat viral glycoproteins through cryo-electron microscopy to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of bat borne sarbecovirus spillover. She steered a number of collaborative projects including exploring the evolutionary history of ACE2 receptor usage in coronaviruses, assessing the role of conformational dynamics in spike glycoproteins receptor tropism, and understanding the stability, and immunogenicity of antigens derived from bat viral glycoproteins. In addition to this work, Dr. Zepeda contributed to a number of pandemic response and pandemic preparedness projects focused on characterizing monoclonal antibodies and developing next generation vaccines.