Sébastien Calvignac-Spencer studied biology at the University of Toulouse and the University of Lyon, where he received his PhD in 2007. He joined the group of Fabian Leendertz at the RKI in 2010 as deputy head. Then, he led a working group focusing on viral evolution. In 2023, he has become the head of the Department of Pathogen Evolution of the Helmholtz Institute for One Health and a professor of Pathogen Evolution at the University of Greifswald.

His research uses evolutionary genomics to investigate the complex origins of human and animal pathogens across vast timescales – from emergent respiratory viruses of the last century such as the 1918 influenza virus to long-standing companions of the human lineage like herpes simplex viruses. He also has a keen interest in exploring technical limits and developing new tools. His work pioneered the use of invertebrates as DNA samplers and, most recently, rekindled interest in ancient formalin-fixed specimens – his lab generated the oldest human-infecting RNA virus genome to date from a 1912 measles case.

Sébastien Calvignac-Spencer is an associate editor with journals from multiple disciplines (Virus Genes, Evolution, Medicine and Public Health, Molecular Ecology and Molecular Ecology Resources) and the current chair of the Polyomaviridae study group of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses.