Martin J. Blaser (Rutgers University)

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Martin J. Blaser - Professor of Medicine and Microbiology, Director of the Centre for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine and Henry Rutgers Chair of the Human Microbiome - received the title of Doctor Honoris Causa on the 10th May 2022.

Photo : Martin J. Blaser © Rutgers The State University of New Jersey
Martin J. Blaser © Rutgers The State University of New Jersey

Born in 1948 and graduated from New York University School of Medicine in 1973, Martin J. Blaser is the Henry Rutgers Chair of the Human Microbiome at Rutgers University (NJ, USA), where he is also Professor of Medicine and Microbiology and Director of the Centre for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine. For 7 years, he was Chair of the Department of Medicine at New York University, where he was Director of the Human Microbiome Programme (NYU School of Medicine).

Research, collaboration, distinctions

A physician and microbiologist, Martin Blaser studies the relationship we have with our persistent colonising bacteria. His work of more than 30 years initially focused on bacteria of the genus Campylobacter and Helicobacter pylori species, which are model systems for understanding the interactions of resident bacteria with their hosts. For the past 20 years, he has been actively studying the relationship between the human microbiome and health and important diseases such as asthma, obesity, diabetes, and cancer.

In 2019, he founded the Rutgers University Microbiome Programme (RUMP), an academic project to develop the science of the microbiome and examine its impact on health, agriculture, the environment, and human culture. He currently serves as Chair of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria (PACCARB) in the United States.

In 2011, Martin Blaser was elected into the National Academy of Medicine in recognition of professional achievements and commitment to medicine and health, before being elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2013.

Martin Blaser’s scientific career has also been recognised with the following awards: National Academy of Medicine Award, Oswald Avery Award, Alexander Fleming Award and Robert Koch Award. He is one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2015.

Holder of 28 U.S. patents, author of more than 730 papers, Martin J. Blaser’s scientific output is outstanding. He is the author of ‘Missing Microbes’, a book for general audiences, now translated into 20 languages. With this book, Martin Blaser shows a great capacity of popularisation, and he regularly intervenes in shows and other public conferences.

The DHC for Prof. Blaser was proposed by Philippe Lehours, university professor - hospital practician, director of the National Reference Centre for Campylobacters and Helicobacters.