Professor of Infectious Diseases and Medicine, St George’s, University of London

Professor George Griffin’s work has involved developing cellular, molecular and whole body research aimed at defining how humans adapt to infection with TB and HIV.

In addition he has used vaccination in humans to define normal and perturbed immune response. Principal research achievements have been in defining the co-relationship of HIV and TB infection, demonstrating how TB drives HIV transcription. His research using an oral cholera vaccine has shown a peak of HIV in the bloodstream in parallel with evolution of immune response and virus derived from the intestinal mucosa in this peak.

Professor Griffin has carried out work at the SGUL Wellcome Unit in Ecuador showing that intestinal infection with ascariasis – a disease caused by a parasitic roundworm - blunts the intestinal immune response. Furthermore, in conjunction with colleagues, he has demonstrated mechanisms of weight loss in HIV and TB using stable isotope technology.

He is the chair of the Department of Health Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens, as well as the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Risk Group; an Adviser to the House of Lords Select Committee on Infection and a member of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Advisory Committee, amongst others.