Dr Jens Madsen, Associate Professor in Child Health at the University of Southampton, talks with PhD students Yasmin Parr and Joanna Morrell for episode 8 of Contagious Thinking and tells us all about the mucosal surfactant proteins, the Collectins, that form a crucial innate immune barrier against viruses and other microbes. Jens and his lab investigate the molecular basis of Collectin function and antiviral activity.