David Markovitz

David M. Markovitz is a Professor of Internal Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Michigan Medical Center, with appointments in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Cancer Biology, and Immunology. He leads a multidisciplinary research team focused on viral-host interactions, particularly retroviruses like HIV, and their roles in disease mechanisms and therapeutic development. His work spans antiviral lectin engineering (e.g., BanLec), centromeric human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs), and inflammatory proteins like DEK and vimentin.

Education: B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies (University of Minnesota, 1976), M.D. (training details not explicitly stated).

Research Interests: Retrovirology, HERV biology, antiviral therapeutics, DEK protein signaling in inflammation and hematopoiesis, vimentin's role in autoimmune disorders, and glycobiology-based cancer therapies. His lab collaborates widely, including with Rafael Contreras, Scott Gitlin, and Mark Kaplan on HERV projects and DEK/vimentin mechanisms.

Key Achievements: Developed H84T BanLec as a broad-spectrum antiviral; identified HERV-K's role in HIV-associated lymphoma and centromere dynamics; discovered DEK's extracellular chemotactic function and its therapeutic potential in juvenile arthritis. Awards include membership in the American Society for Clinical Investigation and Association of American Physicians.

Awards: Burroughs Wellcome Clinical Scientist Award (2003), Transformative R01 Grant (2009), and recognition by multiple clinical and academic societies.

Grants & Collaborations: Active grants include NIH funding for DEK's role in hematopoiesis and DTRA support for BanLec-based Ebola/Marburg treatments. Collaborations span virology, immunology, and glycobiology across U-M and international institutions.

Labs/Teams: Markovitz Research Group at U-M, involving faculty, postdocs, graduate students (e.g., Susana Chan, Evelyn Covés-Datson), and undergraduates. Lab manager Maureen Legendre supports projects on BanLec, DEK, and vimentin.