CSU has a world class BSL – 3 facility on the Foothills Campus where researchers study M. tuberculosis, arthropod – borne viruses, prions and other pathogens requiring high level containment. The Foothills campus is adjacent to the Fort Collins branch of the Centers for Disease Control – Division of Vector-Borne Disease.In addition, BSL2 level research on main campus focuses on retroviruses including HIV, picornaviruses and non – tuberculous mycobacteria. Biochemistry, replication and transmission of these types of pathogen are being investigated as well as the host’s response to infection.The Cell and Molecular Biology Program offers research opportunities from a wide variety of fields to include the molecular and cellular aspects of cancer biology, infectious disease, metabolism (includes biofuels), neuroscience, plant biology, molecular physiology, gene expression, reproductive biology, developmental biology and structural biology. The graduate program in Cell and Molecular Biology is an interdisciplinary degree-granting program that involves over 100 faculty members from 15 departments and 5 colleges who share common interests in cell and molecular biology. The program offers training leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Cell and Molecular Biology; there also is a Cancer Biology specialization. The program includes a core of lecture courses in advanced molecular genetics and cell biology, in laboratory research techniques, and in ethical conduct of science, as well as elective courses in specialized areas and in grant writing, a graduate seminar series in which students present their research, and a weekly seminar series for presentations by CSU faculty and nationally prominent scientists each year. Core courses typically are completed during the first year. On average, the M.S. degree is completed within two years and the Ph.D. degree within five years.