Person
Mackay, Laura
FAA
- Occupation
- Immunologist
Summary
Laura Mackay is an immunologist who is a leader in the field on immunological memory and noted for her innovative research into tissue-resident memory T cells. She showed that there several types of these cells and that they occur in many parts of the body. This work has application in the development of treatments against infection and cancer. Mackay heads her own research group in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the Doherty Institute, University of Melbourne. In 2019 she was awarded the Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year.
Details
"Professor Laura Mackay is one of Australia's most outstanding immunologists and an international leader in the field of immunological memory. Prior to her discoveries, it was erroneously thought that immune memory was controlled by bloodborne elements. Professor Mackay demonstrated this is not the case. She defined a novel population of T lymphocytes, or T cells, resident at body surfaces, showing that these tissue-embedded components were distinct from T cells circulating in the blood. Critically, she showed that tissue-resident T cells provide a dominant first-line defence against infection and cancer, revealing novel genes and pathways that can be exploited to control these cells for therapeutic gain." [from https://science.org.au/about-us/academy-fellows/discover-our-fellows/laura-mackay 2026-06-02]
Chronology
- 2004
- Education - Bachelor of Science (BSc(Hons)), University of Warwick, United Kingdom
- 2005
- Education - Master of Science (MSc), Immunology, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom
- 2009
- Education - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Birmingham, United Kingdom
- 2012
- Award - Victorian Infection and Immunity Network Young Investigator Award
- 2014 - 2016
- Award - ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
- 2016
- Award - Victorian Tall Poppy Award for Excellence in Science
- 2016 - 2019
- Award - Career Development Fellowship, National Health and Medical Research Council
- 2017 - 2022
- Award - Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Bill and Melinda Gates International Research Scholar
- 2018
- Award - Michelson Prize for Human Immunology and Vaccine Development, The Michelson Medical Research Foundation and The Human Vaccines Project
- 2018 - 2021
- Career position - President, Federation of Immunological Societies of Asia-Oceania
- 2019
- Award - Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year, Commonwealth of Australia
- 2019
- Award - Macquarie University Eureka Prize for Outstanding Early Career Researcher
- 2019
- Award - Woodward Medal for Science and Technology, University of Melbourne
- 2019
- Award - Gottschalk Medal, Australian Academy of Science
- 2019 - 2023
- Award - Senior Medical Research Fellowship, Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation
- 2023? - 2026
- Career position - Laboratory Head and Immunology Theme Leader, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity
- 2026 -
- Award - Fellow, Australian Academy of Science
- 2026 -
- Career position - Sir Gustav Nossal Professor of Immunology, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
Related entries
Published resources
Resources
- 'Mackay, Laura', Prime Minister's Prizes for Science 2015 - 2019 [citations], Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, Canberra, 2019, https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20210603161825/https://www.industry.gov.au/data-and-publications/prime-ministers-prizes-for-science-2015-to-2018/2019-prize-recipients/2019-frank-fenner-prize-for-life-scientist-of-the-year. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20210603161759/https://www.industry.gov.au/data-and-publications/prime-ministers-prizes-for-science-2019-to-2015/prime-ministers-prizes-for-science-2019-to-2015. Details
- Gottschalk Medal, Australian Academy of Science, 2022. https://www.science.org.au/supporting-science/awards-and-opportunities/gottschalk-medal. Details
Helen Cohn
Created: 29 October 2019, Last modified: 2 June 2026