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In a ceremony on March 19 in Berlin, Germany, IFM Co-founder Dr. Eicke Latz was awarded the 2018 Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize from the German Research Foundation (DFG), also known as the "German Nobel Prize.” The 2.5 million euro prize honors exceptional scientists and academics for their outstanding achievements in the field of research. Dr. Latz received the award together with his former trainee Veit Hornung for their scientific discoveries in the field of innate immunity. 

Dr. Latz is the Founder and Director of the Institute for Innate Immunity at the University of Bonn. There, he investigates the molecular mechanisms underlying inflammatory responses in the body. His work focuses on understanding how innate immune activation is associated with common diseases such as gout, diabetes, atherosclerosis, and Alzheimer’s disease. The Leibniz prize is an acknowledgment of his profound impact on the field of innate immunity and carries his research over into therapeutic concepts to help bring us closer to new potential treatments for unmet medical needs. 
 
Recent breakthrough research led by Eike’s team includes a publication in Cell on the long-term immune cell alterations due to unhealthy “Western diet”, and a study published in Nature linking the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway to progression of Alzheimer’s disease. 
 
Dr. Latz and his team are honored to receive the award and be recognized for their commitment to their research. “We have many new ideas that are only waiting for appropriate research funding,” he said. “Now, we are looking forward to exploring how environmental influences act on inflammatory responses and what molecular mechanisms lead to activation of innate immune cells.”

Dr. Eicke Latz, IFM Co-Founder