CV

Birth: 1959

Education: 

• 1983 Medical University of Szeged, Faculty of General Medicine: MD

Academic qualifications: 

• 2009 Med. Habil.
• 2007 DSc
• 1996 PhD

Present and previous positions:

• 2012 - Semmelweis University, Department of Genetics, Cell- and Immunobiology: Professor and Chairman
• 2001 - 2012 Semmelweis University, Department of Genetics, Cell- and Immunobiology: University Professor 
• 1998 - 2001 Semmelweis University, Department of Genetics, Cell- and Immunobiology: Assistant Professor
• 1997 - 1998 Department of Orthopedic Surgery Rush Medical Center, Chicago, IL.: Visiting Assistant Professor
• 1996 - 1998 University Medical School of Debrecen, Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, Hungary: Assistant Professor
• 1987 - 1989 Joint diseases Laboratory, Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children, McGill University, Montreal, Canada: Visiting Research Fellow
• 1983 - 1996 University Medical School of Debrecen, Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology: Research Associate

Professional visits:

• 1997 - 1998 Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rush Medical Center, Chicago, IL.: Visiting assistant professor
• 1987 - 1989 Joint Diseases Laboratory, Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children, McGill University, Montreal, Canada:  Visiting research fellow

Activities in education:

• Tutor in cell biology, comparative embryology and genetics (for medical students of the Hungarian and the English Programs)
• Lecturer in basic immunology (for medical students of the Hungarian and the English Programs)
• Examiner of students (midterm, semifinal, final) in cell biology, comparative embryology, human genetics and basic immunology
• Supervisor of research projects of undergraduate students
• Reviewer of scientific theses of undergraduate students
• Supervisor of research projects of PhD students

Memberships: 

• Society of Hungarian Immunologists (elected member of the managing Committe since 2004)
• Society of Hungarian Anatomist, Histologists and Embryologists
• Member of the Reviewing Board of the Hungarian Scientific Research Foundation (OTKA) 1999-2002
• Consortium for Functional Glycomics (2007-)

Other public activities:

• Reviewer of papers for International Immunology and Inflammation Research

Honours and awards:

• 2010 Oustanding Scientific Supervisor for Medical Students at Semmelweis University
• 2007 Academic Prize, Hungary
• 2005 Written compliment by the Rector of Semmelweis University
• 2004 dr. de Chatel Andorné Competition 1st Prize
• 2004 SIGMA Poster Prize in Immunology 3rd Prize
• 2002 Széchenyi Fellowship
• 1998 Bolyai Fellowship
• 1995 "Carol-Nachman Prize in Rheumatology", Germany
• 1987 Fellowship of Shriners of North America

Research interests:

• Autoimmunity, rheumatology, glycoimmunology, extracellular membrane vesicles (ectosomes, exosomes, apoptotic bodies), aggrecan-specific immunity, histamine biology, system's biology

Research areas:

• 2005 - Isolation and investigation of the role of cell derived extracellular membrane vesicle populations
  Investigation of the role of posttransplantation modulations
• 2004 - Understanding the backgrond of enhanced exoglycosidase activity in rheumatoid arthritis
  Immunity against carbohydrate epitopes
• 1999 - 2003 Investigation of the Th1/Th2 balance in histidine decarboxylase (HDC) knockout mice
  Investigation of antibodies reactive to small proteoglycans (decorin and biglycan) in synovial fluid samples of patients suffering from rheumatology diseasesInvestigation of the role of exoglycosidases in rheumatoid arthritis
  Studies on the role of exoglycosidases in rheumatoid arthritis
• 1983 - 1998 Generation of monoclonal antibodies reactive with cartilage proteoglycan, aggrecanInduction and passive transfer of aggrecan-arthritis, studies on the pathomechanism and immunomudulation of aggrecan-arthritis in BALB/c miceGeneration and characterization of T helper hybridoma clones reactive to human aggrecanIsolation of an "arthritogenic" T cell hybridoma clone
  Synthetic peptide-array based draft T cell epitope map of human aggrecan in BALB/c miceFine structural analysis of a dominant T-cell epitope of human aggrecan
  Identification of numerous partial activator T cell epitopes in the core protein of human aggrecan

Languages:

• Hungarian (native)
• English
• Russian