Plenary Lectures and VIP Guests

Harvey J. Alter

Short Bio:

Dr. Alter has been designated as a Distinguished NIH Investigator. Dr. Alter was co-discoverer of the Australia antigen that later proved to be a critical marker of the hepatitis B virus and was principal investigator in studies that identified non-A, non-B hepatitis and later showed its identity to HCV. His prospective studies traced the decline of post-transfusion hepatitis incidence from 30% in 1970 to near zero in 1997. Dr. Alter is recipient of the Clinical Lasker Award, the Canada Gairdner International Award, and has been elected to both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine. In 2020 he was corecipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine and became the first NIH intramural clinical investigator to become a Nobel Laureate.