Shi Zhengli is recruiting researchers for “pathogen discovery/coronavirus” and “cross-species infection risk” work. NIH-backed scientists continued collaborating with her after COVID, including on research using materials she supplied from her new Chinese laboratory.
Shi Zhengli, the Chinese virologist whose years of bat coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology made her one of the most scrutinized scientists in the world after COVID-19, did not disappear.
She moved on to another powerful Chinese state laboratory, where she is now helping train a new generation of coronavirus researchers.
Chinese-language records reviewed for this report show Shi is currently affiliated with Guangzhou Laboratory, a national laboratory established in 2021 that describes itself as part of China’s strategic scientific and technological apparatus for combating respiratory diseases. Her current research profile focuses on discovering new viruses in bats and other wildlife, studying their biological characteristics, and investigating the mechanisms that allow viruses to jump between species.
Even more striking is what Guangzhou Laboratory is recruiting scientists to do under Shi today.
A 2026 doctoral recruitment notice lists Shi as an adviser in pathogen biology with a research concentration explicitly described as “pathogen discovery/coronavirus.”
Another 2026 doctoral program, jointly operated by Guangzhou Laboratory and the Wuhan Institute of Virology, lists Shi as an adviser for “pathogen discovery and cross-species infection risk research.” Students in the program conduct their coursework primarily through the Wuhan Institute of Virology before carrying out most of their scientific research and dissertation work at Guangzhou Laboratory.
Hellbound and Down 