Dr. Jörg Hamann
I trained as a molecular biologist with a specialization in immunology and was awarded my PhD (magna cum laude) by the University of Leipzig for the expression cloning of the early activation antigen CD69 in 1993. Shortly thereafter, I cloned and deorphanized the adhesion GPCR CD97, an achievement that sparked my long-standing interest in adhesion GPCR biology.
To advance this rapidly growing field, I co-founded the Adhesion GPCR Consortium, an international network dedicated to fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange in adhesion GPCR research. Together with colleagues from the Consortium and the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (IUPHAR), I helped establish the unified ADGR nomenclature for adhesion GPCRs, which is now the international standard adopted throughout the field. In recognition of my scientific contributions, I received a fellowship of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in 1999.
As a Principal Investigator at Amsterdam UMC, I investigate the role of tissue-resident T cells and macrophages in the human brain in health and disease. I am also affiliated with the laboratory of Inge Huitinga at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, where we study how immune cells contribute to neurological disorders. Together with Joost Smolders, I led the first comprehensive characterization of human brain-resident memory T cells.
Beyond my own research, I am committed to strengthening the infrastructure that enables high-quality biomedical science. Since 2013, I have served as Head of the Central Biobank at Amsterdam UMC, where I oversee the development and governance of one of the Netherlands’ largest academic biobanks. In 2025, I was appointed National Node Director of BBMRI.nl, the Dutch national research infrastructure for biobanking.
I have co-authored more than 175 peer-reviewed scientific publications and supervised or co-supervised 14 PhD candidates. My work is driven by the goal of connecting fundamental discoveries in immunology with translational and clinical research, thereby improving our understanding of human disease and enabling the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.