Research Award

Veit Hornung has been awarded this year’s Jeantet-Collen Prize for Translational Medicine. The prize is presented by the Swiss Louis-Jeantet Foundation, which supports biomedical research in Europe. It recognizes scientists who have made outstanding contributions to biomedical research with strong clinical applications in Europe. According to a statement from the foundation, Veit Hornung has made "groundbreaking contributions in the field of innate immune defense."

"It is a great honor to receive this prestigious award and to join the ranks of outstanding scientists," Hornung said. "My heartfelt thanks go to my research group and all colleagues who have accompanied, inspired, and supported me over the years. This success would not have been possible without their collaboration and dedication."

Since 2015, Hornung has held the Chair of Immunobiochemistry at LMU's Gene Center. According to the Louis-Jeantet Foundation, he has "made fundamental discoveries about how viral and bacterial infections are recognized by specific cellular receptors that activate immune responses." Hornung’s findings have paved the way for innovations in vaccines and therapies for infectious and autoimmune diseases and have had significant impacts on cancer immunotherapy.

The Geneva-based Louis-Jeantet Foundation is rooted in the legacy of its namesake, a Swiss businessman. The Jeantet-Collen Prize is supported by the Désiré-Collen Foundation and will be presented in April in Geneva, alongside the Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine. The latter will be awarded to Professor Gilles Laurent from the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research. Each prize is endowed with 500,000 Swiss francs (approximately €513,000), the majority of which is designated for research purposes.