Smolka, a biochemist and former interim director of the Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology, will support life sciences across the university. His two-year appointment began May 1. Smolka succeeds Hector Aguilar-Carreño, professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the College of Veterinary Medicine, who served in the role from July 2024 through April 2025.
News
Advancing Health: CCI Announces Multidisciplinary Seed Grants
Three innovative approaches to treating infections, fighting cancer, and enhancing the body’s immune system have been selected for funding through the Cornell Center for Immunology’s 2025 Multidisciplinary Seed Grants.
COVID-flu vaccine could provide broad, lasting protection
The new platform, which provided 100% protection from influenza and COVID-19 in mouse models, could vastly improve vaccine administration and the efficacy of the current flu vaccine.
New appointments to bolster research and innovation
Krystyn J. Van Vliet has been named vice president for innovation and external engagement strategy, and Gary Koretzky ’78 will serve as interim vice provost for research.
Gut fungi amplify inflammation in severe COVID-19
Certain gut-dwelling fungi flourish in severe cases of COVID-19, amplifying the excessive inflammation that drives this disease while also causing long-lasting changes in the immune system, according to a new study led by investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian.
Training ‘immuno-engineers’ is goal of NIH grant
A new Cornell program will train graduate students interested in specializing in “immuno-engineering,” an emerging hybrid field that combines engineering and immunology.
$3.4M grant to tackle ‘biggest challenge’ to HIV cure
Cornell researchers will use a five-year, $3.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to investigate whether chemical inhibitors of epigenetic regulation – including many FDA-approved drugs – could be re-purposed to treat HIV-1 infections that are persistent in tissues and represent the biggest challenge for a cure.
Standout scientist: Dr. Hector Aguilar-Carreño garners top SUNY fellowship
Dr. Hector Aguilar-Carreño, professor of virology in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, was chosen for this fellowship due to his demonstrated success in and bright potential for leadership. He is among only nine fellows across the entire SUNY system and Cornell’s sole representative in the program.
Catching the Memory Thief
Li Gan studies how abnormal proteins and the body’s immune system drive Alzheimer’s disease.
Read the full story here.
Lymphoma mutation yields super-competitive immune cells
The key to understanding how the most aggressive lymphomas arise and resist current therapies may lie in mutations that disrupt a critical natural selection process among antibody-producing B cells, according to a multi-institutional preclinical study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.
