Program Architecture

Core Identity

The tenOever lab builds programmable respiratory viral systems to dissect and direct host biology.

This identity consolidates influenza pathogenesis, synthetic viral perturbation, immune programming, and respiratory gene delivery into one coherent program. Influenza remains a central discovery engine. miRNA targeting remains a powerful enabling technology. Neither should be treated as the sole public-facing headline.

Mission Statement

We engineer respiratory viruses as programmable tools to reveal how infection, sensing, inflammation, antigen acquisition, and tissue context shape host biology, and to translate those principles into next-generation therapeutic delivery systems.

Core Operating Idea

Engineer viruses as causal perturbation tools to reveal, rewrite, and eventually redirect host responses in the respiratory tract.

Lane 1 — Mechanistic Pathogenesis

Primary question: What specific viral activities, in which cell types and time windows, drive sensing, inflammation, pathology, or protection?

Representative assets: influenza pathogenesis studies; fidelity and abortive infection concepts; lineage dynamics; cell-type-restricted perturbation; in vivo challenge expertise; HA membrane signaling; NS1 multifunctionality; viral fitness work.

Best fit for papers and grants: concept papers, disease-mechanism grants, causal studies of respiratory immunopathology.

Atlas links: IAV FITNESS, IAV KINKTURN, Influenza HA Membrane Signaling, NS1 Multifunctionality, RESPOND PPG, LONG COVID.

Lane 2 — Programmable Immune Instruction

Primary question: Can engineered viral genomes impose, withhold, or redirect immune signals in a predictable way?

Representative assets: miRNA logic; synthetic viral perturbation; immune hierarchy constructs; abortive vectors; causal dissection of sensing, cytokine programs, antigen acquisition, and adaptive immune outcome.

Best fit for papers and grants: mechanism-plus-engineering papers, programmable immunology grants, synthetic virology positioning.

Atlas links: IMMUNE HIERARCHY, ADAR LICENSING, Universal Flu Vaccine Egg Farmers Canada, miRNA ON Gates, Vector Engineering, Influenza Reverse Genetics.

Lane 3 — Respiratory Delivery and Therapy

Primary question: Can respiratory viruses become better delivery vehicles for payload flexibility, airway tropism, therapeutic control, immunogenicity management, and redosing?

Representative assets: Sendai-based delivery; HERMES; CPIB3; CAPTURE; payload engineering; biodistribution; immunogenicity benchmarking; R2/PRINT; editor delivery.

Best fit for papers and grants: platform papers, translational grants, DARPA-style therapeutic development efforts.

Atlas links: VECTOR DELIVERY, DARPA CURES HERMES, CAPTURE, CPIB3 Vector, SeV R2 PRINT, Sendai rSeV, BiSeV, CPIB3, R2 PRINT.

Cross-Cutting Principle

The lab should be presented as a question-driven program that uses engineering as a means of discovery. The novelty should usually reside in the biological principle or delivery advance, not in the fact that a virus was engineered.