Dr. Alexis M. Kalergis is a Full Professor at the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Biological Sciences and the Department of Endocrinology, School of Medicine, at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Dr. Kalergis is a Biochemistry graduate from P. Universidad Católica of Chile and obtained his MSc and Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, where his graduate work was awarded the Julius Marmur Award. Then, he performed as a post-doctoral trainee at the Albert Einstein and The Rockefeller University, supported by an Irvington and a Helen Hay Whitney Fellowships. Dr. Kalergis has been Director of the Millennium Nucleus and Institute on Immunology and Immunotherapy, which was recently appointed as a Center of Excellence by the Federation of Clinical of Immunology Societies and Dr. Kalergis as a member of the Board of Directors of this organization. He was appointed as a member of the Presidential Science Committee and the Senate Committee on Science. Further, he was recently nominated as Scientific Liason ICGEB and Director of the Biotechnology Committee at CONICYT. Dr. Kalergis and his colleagues work on the technological transfer of basic biomedical knowledge to concrete applications consisting of new therapy tools for diseases that are prevalent in the Chilean population. As an example, the group of Dr. Kalergis has recently developed a new vaccine against Respiratory Syncytial Virus, the microbe responsible for over 80 % of hospitalization due to respiratory failure. This vaccine (made in Chile) is about to enter a phase I clinical trial in collaboration with physicians and international foundations that contribute to global human health. The research of Dr. Kalergis focuses on the molecular interactions that regulate the synapse between T cells and dendritic cells and their role in immunity against pathogens and tumors, as well as on their modulation to restore self-tolerance during autoimmune disorders. Dr. Kalergis has published over 160 articles in leading journals and over 55 patent applications.
