Dr. Patryk Krakowiak, PhD Neurovirology Immunology
He studies how herpes simplex virus 1 hides inside neurons for a lifetime, and the molecular signals that bring it back.
Under the microscope
Patryk A. Krakowiak, PhD. Biotechnologist from Łódź, Poland. PhD in Medical Microbiology from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Now a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Cliffe Lab, Charlottesville.
His work identified UL12.5 as a first viral protein involved in the early stages of exit from latency and required for HSV‑1 reactivation in neurons.
Discovery
A viral protein that turns the neuron’s own alarm system into a wake‑up call.
First author · 2025
The study shows how HSV‑1 hijacks mitochondrial nucleic‑acid sensing to escape latency.
PNASVol. 122 · No. 4 · January 2025
Fellowship · 2025–2026
Two years on innate immunity in neurons. Every planned aim delivered nearly nine months ahead of schedule.
Montréal · 2026
Oral presentation and poster at the 50th edition of the field’s flagship meeting.
Fulbright · 2019–2020
The program that first brought him to Virginia. He later returned as a mentor to the next cohort.
Research
After the first infection, HSV‑1 never leaves. It stays silent inside neurons for life. His work explains what happens inside the cell at the moment the virus decides to return.
The viral genome sits silenced inside the neuron’s nucleus. No replication, and nothing for the immune system to see. It can stay this way for decades.
Neuronal stress switches on pathways such as c‑Jun. UL12.5 makes mitochondria release nucleic acids, and the cell’s innate alarm goes off.
Instead of stopping the virus, the alarm helps it wake. Without UL12.5, reactivation fails. Switching the same pathways on directly restores it. New virions travel down the axon.
Publications
Featured · First author
HSV‑1 exploits antiviral defences in neurons to exit latency. Direct activation of innate immune pathways induces reactivation and compensates for the loss of UL12.5.
Read in PNAS ↗Culturing neurons at 5% oxygen reduces cellular stress and limits full reactivation.
The conditions of first infection leave a molecular scar in neurons that shapes later reactivation.
A new method to quantify histone modifications on individual viral genomes.
Review of RUNX factors in castration‑resistant prostate cancer and their therapeutic potential.
Journey
Engineering and master’s studies in Łódź, specializing in molecular biology.
Research fellowship at UVA and program President. Prostate cancer research with Prof. Daniel Gioeli.
BioOpen national conference of life‑science PhD students, for work on induced neurons as aging models.
Biomedical Sciences, Medical Microbiology, Cliffe Lab. Degree conferred May 17, 2026.
Postdoctoral Research Associate, UVA School of Medicine.
“Coming from Poland to pursue science in the U.S. has been one of the biggest adventures of my life, and I’m proud of how far this journey has taken me.”
Dr. Patryk Krakowiak · Neurovirologist
Beyond the Lab
Swimmer, lifeguard and instructor. The same patience and discipline that long experiments demand.
Polish Water Rescue Service (WOPR).
Polish Swimming Federation.
Polish, English, Spanish and Russian.
Member of the American Heart Association and the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Contact
Research collaborations, speaking invitations and science communication.