Simona Ruta is Professor of Virology and Vice-Rector for scientific research at the Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy. She is a senior researcher and scientific director of the HIV International Research Center, affiliated to the Baylor Pediatric AIDS Initiative, in Ştefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology. Her main research fields are driven by the clinical evolution and molecular epidemiology of blood-borne-transmitted viral infections (with an emphasis on HIV and viral hepatitis), the virologic and immunologic surveillance of emerging and re-emerging viral diseases (with a focus on neurotropic viruses) and monitoring of viral vaccines efficacy. Currently, Simona Ruta is Chair of the National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (NITAG), executive Vice President of the Romanian Society for Microbiology and member of the Educational Subcommittee of the board of the European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.