Dr. Meier’s research spans areas of molecular biology and epidemiology of viruses and conduct of clinical trials to test novel drugs and vaccines to treat or prevent infections. He credits the experience he gained from engaging people with HIV in participating in clinical trials in the early days of the HIV epidemic as full filling his research quest of forwarding basic science discoveries to the ultimate delivery of life-saving medications to marginalized populations. Dr. Meier’s bench science laboratory primarily focuses on elucidating mechanisms controlling cytomegalovirus (CMV) gene expression. Using advanced technologies, his laboratory has uncovered mechanisms of viral transcription control not previously known. Their aim is to identify viral-specific targets susceptible to pharmacologic agents that could effectively stop CMV replication. Their recent development of new methods to study transcription control are broadly relevant to other viruses and human diseases. In recent years, his laboratory has also contributed to a multisite collaborative effort to study the molecular epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and mpox.