Judith Reyes Ballista

Judith M. Reyes Ballista completed a B.S. in Cellular and Molecular Biology at the University of Puerto Rico – Rio Piedras. During that time, she obtained diverse research experience in virology and disease ecology by studying protein interactions of Zika, Ebola, and HIV and the dynamics of Anole lizard malaria transmission. Her doctoral research focuses on understanding the role of cellular lipids in the entry, infectivity, and budding of RNA viruses such as Chikungunya and Vesicular Stomatitis Virus. Judith has received multiple awards for her work, including the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF-GFP), NIAID Diversity Supplement, ARCS award, and the grand prize for the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. Judith enjoys art and hiking in her free time.