Brigitta Stockinger facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gitta Stockinger
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Brigitta Stockinger
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| Alma mater | University of Mainz (PhD) |
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Dr. Brigitta Stockinger is a scientist who studies the immune system. She is known as a molecular immunologist. Dr. Stockinger works at the Francis Crick Institute in London, England.
Her team learns how special cells called T cells grow and do their job. They also look at how things like food and the environment can change how our immune system works. Dr. Stockinger is very interested in a type of immune cell called a CD4 T cell. These cells help our bodies fight off germs like viruses and bacteria.
Dr. Stockinger's work has helped us understand a specific type of CD4 T cell called a Th17 cell. She studies why some of these cells can cause inflammation and harm the body. Her lab found a special part of cells called the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). This receptor helps connect things from our environment to our immune system.
Education and Early Career
Dr. Stockinger studied at the University of Mainz in Germany. There, she earned her PhD degree in Biology. After that, she continued her research in London, Cambridge, and at the Cancer Research Institute in Heidelberg.
From 1985 to 1991, Dr. Stockinger was a member of the Basel Institute for Immunology.
Research Career
Dr. Stockinger has had an important career in science.
- From 1991 to 2015, she led the Division of Molecular Immunology. This division was part of the MRC National Institute for Medical Research.
- Since 2015, she has been a main researcher at the Francis Crick Institute.
- In July 2020, Dr. Stockinger also joined the Institute's leadership team as an Associate Research Director.
Awards and Recognition
Dr. Stockinger has received several important awards for her scientific work.
- In 2008, she became a member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). This group includes top scientists in Europe.
- In 2013, she was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society. This is a very high honor for scientists in the United Kingdom.
- She is also a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Her nomination for the Royal Society said that Dr. Stockinger helped us understand how T cells work. It mentioned that she was the first to explain how Th17 cells develop. She also showed that these cells can change how they act depending on what is happening in the body. Dr. Stockinger found that the Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) links the immune system to things in the environment. This receptor helps Th17 cells fight off infections and can also be involved in autoimmunity, which is when the immune system attacks the body's own healthy cells.
