Dr. Stefan H.E. Kaufmann stands as a preeminent leader in the field of immunology and infection biology with a distinguished career spanning over four decades. He currently serves as Director Emeritus at both the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin and the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences in Göttingen, having founded the former institute in 1993 and led its Department of Immunology until 2019. In addition to his Max Planck roles, he holds the position of Senior Professor at Charité – University Medicine Berlin since 2022, and serves as a Faculty Fellow at Texas A&M University's prestigious Hagler Institute for Advanced Study since 2018. His academic journey began with a Dr. Rer. Nat. (PhD) from the University of Mainz in 1977, followed by a habilitation in immunology and microbiology at the Free University of Berlin in 1981. Prior to establishing the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, he served as Professor for Medical Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Ulm from 1987 to 1998, where he rose to become Full Professor and Chair of the Department of Immunology.
Dr. Kaufmann's pioneering research has fundamentally advanced our understanding of immune responses to intracellular bacterial pathogens, with tuberculosis serving as his primary model system of investigation. His work has been recognized globally with his status as one of the 0.01% most cited scientists worldwide, boasting over 100,000 citations across his extensive publication record of more than 900 scientific papers. He has made seminal contributions to the development of novel tuberculosis vaccines, including a recombinant BCG vaccine currently in phase III clinical efficacy trials, representing a potential breakthrough in combating one of humanity's oldest infectious diseases. His research spans experimental animal studies, clinical investigations, and computational biology approaches to unravel host-pathogen interactions at both innate and adaptive immune levels. Dr. Kaufmann's expertise extends to the identification of biosignatures that serve as correlates of protection against tuberculosis, a critical advancement for vaccine development and disease monitoring.
Beyond his research achievements, Dr. Kaufmann has provided exceptional leadership to the global immunology community through his past presidencies of the German Society for Immunology, the European Federation of Immunological Societies, and the International Union of Immunological Societies. He has received numerous prestigious honors including the Gardner Middlebrook Lifetime Achievement Award, the SmithKline Beecham Science Prize, and the Eijkman Medal, reflecting his transformative impact on the field. His scientific influence extends through extensive international collaborations, holding honorary and visiting professorships at institutions including Tongji University in Shanghai, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia in Lima, and Stellenbosch University in Cape Town. As Director Emeritus, he continues to lead an emeritus group focused on systems immunology, mentoring the next generation of scientists while advancing research at the intersection of immunology, microbiology, and computational approaches. His enduring commitment to scientific excellence and global health continues to shape the future direction of infection biology and vaccine development worldwide.
