Shane Crotty
Shane Crotty graduated from MIT with dual degrees in Biology and Writing and obtained his Ph.D. at UCSF. He carried out postdoctoral studies at Emory University before starting his laboratory at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology, now the La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI), in 2003, where he is now a full professor and the Chief Scientific Officer.
Dr. Crotty鈥檚 lab studies the fundamental immunology underlying vaccine functions and is best known for understanding how white blood cells (T cells and B cells) work together to make antibody responses against infectious diseases. The Crotty lab made important contributions to understanding COVID-19. His early COVID-19 immunology work, with Dr. Alessandro Sette, was the first study to define virus-specific immunity to SARS-CoV-2 and was influential in vaccine development, and became the highest public attention getting Cell paper ever (Cell 2020). His studies on COVID-19 immune memory was highly influential for understanding the likelihood of protective immunity against recurrent COVID-19. Additionally, his @profshanecrotty Twitter account and YouTube appearances were highly viewed for accessible explanations of vaccine safety and how vaccines work. Dr. Crotty has been a Highly Cited Researcher in immunology for 9 years running. He currently holds an NIH Merit Award, and was awarded the 2023 American Association of Immunologists (AAI) Herzenberg Award for outstanding career contributions to B cell biology.