Appointment ‍Details

University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced⁣ Sept.‍ 9 the appointment of distinguished parasitologist and immunologist Stefan Kappe,‌ PhD, to ⁣be ‌the new​ director of the school’s ⁤ Center for Vaccine Development and Global ⁣Health (CVD). He will also serve as the Myron M. Levine, MD, DTPH Professor of Vaccinology in the Department​ of pediatrics.

Kappe is‍ currently a professor and the associate vice‌ chair of basic science ⁤research in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Washington⁤ in Seattle. He is also ‍a senior principal investigator at the Center for Global infectious disease Research at‍ Seattle Children’s Research Institute, where he recently served as an associate director. ​Dr. kappe is internationally known for ​his transformational work in genetic engineering of parasites, which has led to a novel malaria vaccine type that demonstrated the potential to provide a high level of​ protection⁢ against malaria infection in preclinical models and a clinical study. He is also recognized for his landmark research on‌ the⁤ early phases of malaria parasite infection in the liver.

He ⁤plans to ⁣begin his new position early next year; ‍James Campbell, MD, MS, professor of pediatrics at ⁣UMSOM, ‌will continue to serve as interim director of CVD until that time. He took over ‌in ⁢July from Miriam⁣ laufer,MD,who had been ‌serving as interim director since⁢ April​ 2024.

Kappe’s ⁤Research Focus

Kappe’s ‌laboratory focuses on understanding the complex pathobiology of malaria parasites and immune responses ‍to ‌infection,with the goal of designing transformational ‍interventions.