Rafi Ahmed

Rafi Ahmed
Born 1948 (age 68–69)
Hyderabad, India
Fields Microbiology, immunology
Patrons Pallotta TeamWorks[1]
Alma mater Harvard University
Thesis Genetic Studies Of Persistent Reovirus Infection In L Cells (1981)
Notable awards Member of the National Academy of Sciences since 2009, received American Association of Immunologists' Excellence in Mentoring Award in 2015[2]

Rafi Ahmed (born 1948 in Hyderabad, India) is an Indian-American virologist and immunologist. He is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Emory University, where he is also the director of the Emory Vaccine Center and a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Vaccine Research. In 2009, he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.[3]

Early life and education

Ahmed was born and raised in Hyderabad, where he received his BSc in chemistry from Osmania University in 1968. In 1970, he moved to Pocatello, Idaho to attend Idaho State University, where he received another B.S. in 1972 and an M.S. in 1974, both of which were in microbiology. He then attended McGill University, originally with the goal of getting a doctorate in microbiology, but after he became unsure about whether he really wanted to do this, he dropped out of McGill and later worked as a research assistant there for two years. In 1981, he received his Ph.D. in microbiology from Harvard University after studying for four years in Bernard Fields's lab. Later that year, he left Harvard for the Scripps Institute to begin his postdoc.[4]

Career

After completing his postdoc in 1984, Ahmed joined the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) as an assistant professor. In 1992, he became a full professor there. In 1995, he left UCLA and joined the faculty at Emory as a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Vaccine Research and the director of the Emory Vaccine Center, positions he has held ever since. He initially served as a professor of microbiology and immunology at Emory until 2010, when he was named to the Charles Howard Candler Professorship of microbiology and immunology there.[4]

Research

Ahmed is known for his research on T cells, which he began studying during his postdoc.[4] Specifically, he has studied memory T cell differentiation and immunity of T and B cells against viruses, such as hepatitis C and HIV.[5][6] His lab also conducts research into viral persistence using animal models.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Harbert, Nancy (18 November 2002). "Riding Your Heart Out, Then Feeling Betrayed". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ "Rafi Ahmed". American Association of Immunologists.
  3. ↑ "Rafi Ahmed". Member Directory. National Academy of Sciences.
  4. 1 2 3 "Biography of Rafi Ahmed". Game Changers. Emory University.
  5. ↑ "Rafi Ahmed". Emory Vaccine Center. Emory University.
  6. ↑ McNeil, Donald (20 December 2010). "Five Years In, Gauging Impact of Gates Grants". The New York Times.
  7. ↑ "Rafi Ahmed". Department of Microbiology and Immunology. Emory University.
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