Prof. Dr. Peter Murray is a distinguished immunologist and leader in the field of immune regulation who currently serves as Senior Group Leader of the Immunoregulation Research Group at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried, Germany. Appointed to this position in 2017, he also holds the title of Honorarprofessor at the Technical University of Munich since 2018, demonstrating his significant standing in the German academic community. Prior to his move to Germany, Dr. Murray spent 19 years at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, where he progressed from Assistant Member to Associate Member, establishing himself as a prominent figure in immunological research. His academic journey began with undergraduate studies at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, followed by doctoral research at The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research and the University of Melbourne, where he earned his PhD. This strong foundation in Australian immunological research prepared him for his influential career spanning multiple continents and research institutions.
Dr. Murray's research has fundamentally advanced our understanding of immune regulatory mechanisms, particularly through his seminal work on macrophages, IL-10 signaling, and arginine metabolism in immune responses. His laboratory has pioneered investigations into the cellular and molecular networks that govern immune system activation and deactivation, revealing critical insights into how these processes maintain self-tolerance while responding to pathogens and tissue damage. Most recently, his work has focused on immune regulatory events mediated by metabolic crosstalk, demonstrating how amino acid metabolism serves as a crucial communication channel between different immune cells. Dr. Murray has successfully translated principles learned from infection biology to cancer immunology, identifying common immunoregulatory control points that apply across diverse disease contexts. His innovative approach to studying ferroptosis, interferons, and amino acid metabolism has opened new avenues for therapeutic intervention in autoimmune diseases, chronic inflammation, and cancer.
As an elected member of the American Academy of Microbiology and recipient of prestigious awards including the Hartwell Foundation Individual Biomedical Award and the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital Faculty Mentoring Award, Dr. Murray has earned significant recognition from his peers for both his scientific contributions and leadership. His laboratory continues to drive innovation in immunology by exploring the fundamental mechanisms that govern immune responses across different biological contexts, with particular emphasis on translating basic discoveries into clinically relevant applications. Dr. Murray actively contributes to the scientific community through his role as Elected Chair of the American Society of Microbiology Division E, shaping research directions and fostering collaboration within the field. His ongoing research program seeks to further elucidate the complex interplay between metabolic pathways and immune regulation, with the goal of developing novel therapeutic strategies that can modulate immune responses in precise and targeted ways for improved patient outcomes.
