Thomas C. and Joan M. Professor
Stanford University
Stanford, CA, United States
David A. Relman is the Thomas C. and Joan M. Merigan Professor in Medicine, and a Professor of Microbiology & Immunology at Stanford University, and Chief of Infectious Diseases at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. He is also Senior Fellow at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford, and served as the Center’s Science Co-Director from 2013-2017. Relman trained at MIT and then Harvard Medical School, followed by clinical training in internal medicine and infectious diseases at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and a postdoctoral fellowship in microbiology at Stanford.
Relman was an early pioneer in the modern study of the human microbiome. His current research work focuses on assembly, diversity, stability, and resilience of human microbial communities, especially in response to antibiotics. Previous work included the development and application of new methods for pathogen discovery, and the molecular basis of bacterial pathogenesis. He received an NIH Director’s Pioneer Award in 2006, an NIH Transformative Research Award in 2013, the Walsh McDermott Medal from the National Academy of Medicine, and the Alexander Fleming Award from the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He has served as President of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
Among policy-relevant activities in biological security and emerging infections, Relman was chair of the Forum on Microbial Threats, chair of the Standing Committee that examined illnesses in U.S. State Department employees stationed in Cuba and China, and a member of the Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, all at the U.S. National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. He was a founding member of the National Science Advisory Board on Biosecurity, and is a member of the Defense Science Board at the Department of Defense, and the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. In 2024, he served as Senior Advisor in the Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response policy at the Executive Office of the President in The White House.
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Sunday, October 19, 2025
1:30 PM - 3:15 PM US ET
26 - What's Hot in ID Basic Sciences
Sunday, October 19, 2025
2:20 PM - 2:45 PM US ET