Jay A. Berzofsky

Dr. Berzofsky pioneered characterization of B- and T-cell epitopes and their modification to make epitope-enhanced vaccines discovered the importance of T cell avidity in viral/tumor clearance, pioneered the use of defined molecular adjuvants to alter the quality of immune responses, advanced mucosal HIV vaccines, discovered NKT cell regulation of tumor immunity, and blocked negative regulation by TGF-beta, IL-13, and regulatory cells to enhance tumor immunity and vaccine efficacy. He translated these strategies to clinical trials in prostate cancer, melanoma, and HER2-positive cancers. As chief of the National Cancer Institute’s Vaccine Branch, he oversees basic, translational, and clinical research in cancer and retroviral vaccines and immunotherapy.