Wardemann Hedda

Hedda Wardemann is a Professor and Head of the Division of B-Cell Immunology at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg, Germany since 2014. She previously served as the Speaker of the Tumor Immunology Program at DKFZ (2016-2019) and held leadership roles at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology and The Rockefeller University. Her research focuses on B cell immunology, vaccine development, and systems immunology, with significant contributions to understanding antibody responses against pathogens like malaria and Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Education:

• Dr. rer. nat. in Immunology, Albert-Ludwig-University Freiburg (2001)
• Graduate Studies in Immunology, Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology (1998-2001)
• Dipl. Biol. from Albert-Ludwig-University Freiburg (1998)

Research Interests: Wardemann’s work spans B cell biology, single-cell analysis, and translational vaccine research. She investigates how natural parasite exposure and vaccination shape protective antibody responses, with a focus on malaria and bacterial infections. Her lab develops high-throughput methods to profile immunoglobulin repertoires and elucidate clonal selection dynamics in immunity.

Scientific Contributions: Her recent publications highlight breakthroughs in understanding antibody specificity for Klebsiella pneumoniae, the role of affinity maturation in malaria immunity, and novel methods for single-cell immunoglobulin sequencing. These studies underscore her lab’s dual focus on basic immunology and applied vaccine development.

Awards:

• 2018: Member of the European B Cell Network
• 2015: Founding member of the IUIS Vaccine Committee

Leadership & Grants: As Division Head, Wardemann oversees a multidisciplinary team exploring B cell-driven immunity. Her research has been supported by grants focused on malaria, tuberculosis, and systems-level immunology studies. She maintains collaborations with international institutions like the NIH and the University of Oxford to advance vaccine design strategies.

Labs/Teams: Her division operates within the DKFZ’s broader tumor immunology framework, integrating computational immunology, single-cell technologies, and clinical trial data to advance translational research.