In 1985, virologist Flossie Wong-Staal became the first person to clone HIV, which led to the development of HIV detection blood tests.

She leaves behind a lasting legacy. As a molecular biologist, she was part of a team that identified HIV as the cause of AIDS. She is also credited with being the first person to clone HIV and determine the function of its genes.

Her research helped lay the foundations for investigating treatments for emerging infectious diseases like COVID-19.