Dr. Judd F. Hultquist is an Assistant Professor in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. His research is focused on understanding how the host-pathogen relationship influences human health and disease at the molecular level. In the course of his work, Dr. Hultquist has developed a CRISPR-Cas9 functional genomics platform for the identification of HIV host factors in primary T cells, has identified novel variants of SARS-CoV-2 associated with increased transmission and spread, has identified a host peptide that functions as an antiviral biologic for Ebola virus infection, and has characterized a novel class of Cas9 inhibitors in the genomes of bacteriophages. He is currently extending these systems-based approaches to better understand how human diversity influences disease severity and treatment outcome. Through these efforts, he ultimately hopes to strengthen the bridge from big data to targeted discovery to clinical application for the development of personalized, host-driven therapies and the advancement of human health.