HHMI, Yale Sch. of Med.
Akiko Iwasaki (AAI ’00) is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator and Waldemar Von Zedtwitz Professor of Immunobiology and of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale School of Medicine. Her research is focused on understanding how viruses are recognized by the innate immune system and how this information can be used to generate protective adaptive immunity, including the rational design of effective vaccines. Dr. Iwasaki has served on the AAI Council since 2018. She is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. Additional honors include the AAI-Thermo Fisher Meritorious Career Award, AAI-BD Biosciences Investigator Award, American Society for Microbiology Eli Lilly and Company Research Award, Burroughs Wellcome Fund Investigator in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease Award, Infectious Diseases Society of America Wyeth Lederle Young Investigator Award, and Ethel Donaghue Women’s Health Program Investigator Award. In addition to a dynamic research program, Dr. Iwasaki is dedicated to resolving challenges and improving equality in training young scientists, and to advocating for science through the power of social media.
