Trained as a virologist, Robert Lanford has worked with nonhuman primate disease models for 30 years, having established his lab at TBRI (then the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research) in 1984. Recently, his primary research focus has been hepatitis B and C viruses, with an emphasis on viral-host interactions and the innate immune response, and how these influence either viral clearance or persistence and disease progression. Lanford has extensive experience in testing new antiviral therapies in the chimpanzee as the final preclinical step before human trials. His work with chimpanzees has demonstrated the potential for a broadly protective vaccine for hepatitis C. Lanford received his PhD in virology from the Baylor College of Medicine. He was founding co-editor of the journal Viral Immunology and has been an editorial board member for two virology journals. He has served on several NIH review boards and organized international conferences on the hepatitis C virus.