Lothar H. Wieler
German veterinarian and microbiologist (born 1961)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lothar Heinz Wieler (born 8 February 1961) is a German veterinarian and microbiologist who served as president of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) from 2015 to 2023.[1] In this capacity, he advised the German Federal and State Governments on topics of public health, especially infection hazards, and on the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic.[2]
8 February 1961
Lothar H. Wieler | |
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| Born | Lothar Heinz Wieler 8 February 1961 |
| Scientific career | |
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| Website | hpi |
Early life and education
Wieler was born in Königswinter, Germany. He studied veterinary medicine at Free University of Berlin and LMU Munich from 1980 to 1985.[3]
Career
From 1998 until 2015, Wieler worked as professor and director of the Institute of Microbiology and Epizootics at the Free University of Berlin. During that time, he spent a sabbatical at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in Hinxton under the supervision of Gordon Dougan.[3]
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany, Wieler launched Europe’s first large-scale SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing in an effort to help researchers assess infection rates and monitor the spread of the virus more effectively; the study was carried out jointly by the Robert Koch Institute, Charité and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research.[4]
In addition to his role at RKI, Wieler was a member of the World Health Organization's Strategic and Technical Advisory Group for Infectious Hazards (STAG-IH) since 2018.[5] In 2020, he chaired the WHO's Committee for the Review of the International Health Regulations.[6] Also in 2020, he was appointed to the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance, co-chaired by Sheikh Hasina and Mia Mottley.[7]
Since 2023, Wieler has been working at the Hasso Plattner Institute.[8]
Other activities
- Virchow Prize for Global Health, Member of the Council (since 2022)[9]
- World Health Organization (WHO), Member of the European Advisory Committee on Health Research (since 2018)[10]
- Global Research Collaboration for Infectious Disease Preparedness (GloPID-R), Member of the Scientific Advisory Board (since 2016)
- Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Member of the Board of Trustees[11]
- Robert Koch Foundation, Member of the Scientific Advisory Council[12]
Awards
- 2024 Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany[13][14]
