Katherine Seley-Radtke is a Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a former UMBC Presidential Research Professor.  She received her Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Auburn University. Her research employs synthetic organic and medicinal chemistry approaches to nucleoside and heterocyclic drug discovery. Current projects include the development of flexible nucleosides/ nucleobases ("fleximers") against the SARS and MERS coronaviruses, Ebola, hepatitis C virus, dengue, Zika and Yellow fever viruses. Her group recently published the first report of a doubly flexible nucleoside inhibiting coronaviruses, with potent activity against MERS-CoV and human CoV. She is the current Secretary and former president of the International Society of Nucleosides, Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids. She is also the President-Elect of the International Society for Antiviral Research.