Bloomberg Distinguished Professorship in Immunobiology

Bloomberg School of Public Health, School of Medicine

Established in 2014 by Michael R. Bloomberg

MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG is a Johns Hopkins alumnus, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, World Health Organization Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Climate Action, and former New York City mayor.

He is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who served as mayor of New York City from 2002-2013 after leading the company he started in 1981 for 20 years. Since leaving City Hall, he has resumed leadership of Bloomberg LP.

Bloomberg was elected mayor less than two months after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Under his leadership, the city rebounded faster and stronger than expected on issues ranging from education to health to economic development.

A lifelong philanthropist, Bloomberg founded Bloomberg Philanthropies, which focuses on five main areas: public health, education, the environment, the arts, and government innovation. He also leads a number of bi-partisan coalitions on urgent issues, including climate change, illegal guns, immigration reform, and infrastructure investment. In January 2013, he made the $350 million gift that established the Bloomberg Distinguished Professorships and provided undergraduate financial aid.

Bloomberg graduated from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School.

Held by Edward Pearce

An expert in immunobiology, EDWARD PEARCE investigates the role of cellular metabolism in immune cell function and fate during infection and cancer in order to identify ways to inhibit or promote metabolic pathways to manipulate immune responses. Pearce’s long-term goal for this work is modulating metabolic processes for therapy.

Pearce’s laboratory focuses on two overlapping research areas. First, Pearce seeks to understand how immune cells are able to make changes to their metabolism—a process called metabolic reprogramming—and why different types of metabolism are required for different activation states in immune cells. Second, Pearce studies type 2 immune responses, which are induced by certain types of infection, including helminth parasites or allergy and asthma, and can be implicated in wound healing and tumor progression. In particular, he examines how types 2 immunity is initiated and maintained, as well as the consequences of this type of immune response.

Pearce joined Johns Hopkins University as a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor in 2020 from the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics.