Helga Rübsamen-Schaeff

Helga Rübsamen-Schaeff is a renowned professor of Biochemistry and Virology at Goethe University Frankfurt. Her career spans academic research at the Georg-Speyer-Haus (where she revitalized the institute from 1987 onwards), industrial leadership at Bayer, and successful biotech entrepreneurship as founder of AiCuris. She pioneered HIV diagnostic methods and antiviral drug development, culminating in the FDA-approved Prevymis® for cytomegalovirus infections.

• Educations: Münster (Chemistry PhD 1973), postdocs at Cornell University (Biochemistry) and Harvard (Molecular Biology)
• Key roles: Director of Georg-Speyer-Haus (1987–1994), Head of Bayer's Virology Research (1994–2003), AiCuris CEO (2003–present)

Research focuses on viral oncogenesis mechanisms, antiviral drug discovery, and translational medicine. Her work bridges academia and industry, emphasizing practical applications of virology insights. Received Germany's Zukunftspreis (2018) for Prevymis® development.