Dr. Klaus Ley is a world-renowned immunologist whose pioneering work bridges vascular biology and immunology to address cardiovascular disease. He currently serves as Co-Director of the Immunology Center of Georgia and holds the Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar position at Augusta University's Medical College of Georgia. Dr. Ley earned his medical degree from Julius-Maximilians-Universität in Würzburg, Germany in 1982 and completed postdoctoral training at Freie Universität Berlin. His distinguished career includes significant leadership roles as Director of the Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center at the University of Virginia from 2001 to 2007, followed by fifteen years as a professor at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology before joining Augusta University in 2022.
Dr. Ley's groundbreaking research has fundamentally transformed our understanding of the immune system's role in atherosclerosis, revealing how chronic immune cell adhesion to blood vessels accelerates arterial plaque formation. His laboratory's innovative investigations into integrin activation in inflammatory cells have provided critical mechanistic insights into the inflammatory processes driving cardiovascular disease. Most significantly, Dr. Ley has pioneered the development of a novel vaccine approach targeting the autoimmune response to APOB, which has successfully reduced atherosclerotic plaque in mouse models and represents a potential paradigm shift in cardiovascular prevention. His current research employs high-dimensional single-cell RNA sequencing to identify new therapeutic targets while exploring the unexpected role of olfactory receptors in macrophages during atherosclerosis development.
Recognized as a Distinguished Scientist by the American Heart Association and recipient of the prestigious Landis Award and Malpighi Award, Dr. Ley continues to shape the field through his leadership at the Immunology Center of Georgia. His translational research program actively bridges basic immunological discoveries with clinical applications, focusing on developing a vaccine that could prevent the world's leading cause of death. Dr. Ley's ongoing work on population-specific immune responses to atherosclerosis promises to advance personalized approaches to cardiovascular disease prevention. With his unwavering commitment to transforming immunological insights into practical therapies, Dr. Ley's research continues to illuminate new pathways for combating cardiovascular disease through innovative immune modulation strategies.
