virologist

/vɪˈrɑləʤɪst/

Other forms: virologists

A virologist is a scientist who studies infectious diseases. Contagious viruses like measles, mumps, the flu, and coronavirus are the particular focus of a virologist.

After 19th-century scientists found that some diseases were caused by viruses, rather than bacteria or fungi, the very first virologists began examining these newly-discovered microorganisms. Today there are many advanced techniques and tools for understanding viruses and the infections they produce in humans. Virologist is from virus, originally defined as "poisonous substance," and its Latin root, which means "poison, sap of plants, or slimy liquid."

Definitions of virologist

1. noun

   a specialist in virology
   examples:

   Jonas Edward Salk

   United States virologist who developed the Salk vaccine that is injected against poliomyelitis (born 1914)

   type of:

   microbiologist

   a specialist in microbiology