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American Association of Immunologists

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The American Association of Immunologists
AbbreviationAAI
Formation1913
TypeScientific society
HeadquartersRockville, Maryland
FieldsImmunology
MembersOver 7,000 (2026)
President
Ulrich H. von Andrian
Websitewww.aai.org

The American Association of Immunologists (AAI) is a professional scientific society founded in 1913 to advance the field of immunology and promote understanding of the immune system and its role in health and disease. AAI publishes scientific journals, convenes an annual meeting, provides education and career development programs, and engages in public policy and advocacy related to biomedical research and public health.[1]

History

The AAI was founded on June 19, 1913. The original 41 members of the society were all disciples of Almroth Wright, the founder and director of the Inoculation Department at St. Mary's Hospital in London.[2] The first AAI annual meeting was held in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on June 22, 1914.[3]

AAI established The Journal of Immunology in the early years of the organization.[4]

Organization

AAI is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland.[5]

AAI is led by a council of eight scientists who are elected by voting members of AAI. The council includes four officers—president, vice-president, secretary-treasurer, and past president—as well as four additional councilors.[6]

AAI relies on input from AAI members who volunteer to sit on AAI Committees for limited terms. These Committees are established to provide a diverse range of voices that represent all segments of AAI's membership. Committees carry out specific duties such as financial planning, program development, annual meeting planning, and overseeing AAI's academic journals.[7]

Academic Journals

AAI is the publisher of The Journal of Immunology and ImmunoHorizons.

Meetings and Programs

Annual Meeting

AAI organizes an annual scientific meeting (IMMUNOLOGY), bringing together researchers to present findings in immunology. Scientific results presented at the meeting have included advances in experimental therapeutics and drug discovery.[8]

Education and career development

AAI provides fellowships, mentoring programs, and training initiatives to support scientists at various career stages.

Advocacy and public policy

AAI engages in public policy and advocacy related to biomedical research funding, vaccination, and public health.

The organization has participated in coalitions of scientific societies emphasizing the importance of vaccines and countering misinformation.[9]

AAI has been among medical organizations responding to U.S. health policy developments and vaccine-related controversies.[10]

AAI has also contributed to public discourse on vaccine policy and public health in major media coverage discussing federal health leadership and vaccine policy shifts.[11]

Proposed federal budget reductions affecting biomedical research institutions such as the National Institutes of Health have also been widely debated in policy discussions covered by national media.[12]

Public Outreach

AAI conducts initiatives to improve public understanding of immunology, including educational resources and outreach programs such as Immunology Explained.[13]

Membership

AAI has 7,700 members in 68 countries.[14] Its membership includes principal investigators, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, administrators, and other professionals dedicated to furthering the study of immunology.

Nobel laureates

Since 1919, 27 AAI members have been awarded the Nobel Prize.[15][16] All laureates received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, except where indicated.

Lifetime Achievement Award recipients

Past presidents

See also

References

  1. "Home - The American Association of Immunologists". AAI. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  2. “The Founding of AAI.” AAI Newsletter, May–June 2012, 24–29.; British Medical Journal 2, no. 2761 (1913): 1434 ; “Medical News,” JAMA 61, no. 23 (1913): 2079.
  3. “American Association of Immunologists,” Society Reports, Medical Record 86 (1914): 942–946; “Medical News,” Boston Medical and Surgical Journal 170, no. 26 (1914): 1002 ; “Medical News,” JAMA 62, no. 25 (1914): 1975.
  4. "The American Association of Immunologists - Founding The Journal of Immunology". www.aai.org. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  5. "National Immunization Awareness Month - The American Association of Immunologists". AAI. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  6. "AAI Leadership". American Association of Immunologists. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  7. "The American Association of Immunologists - Committees". www.aai.org. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  8. "ByteDance's drug unit presents AI-designed therapies at global conferences". FirstWord Pharma. May 4, 2026.
  9. "Combating vaccine revisionism". Nature Medicine. 2025.
  10. "Medical groups call on US Health Secretary Kennedy to step down". Reuters. September 4, 2025.
  11. "The Many Ways Kennedy Is Already Undermining Vaccines". The New York Times. April 13, 2025.
  12. "HHS budget proposal details significant cuts to National Institutes of Health, other agencies". CNN. May 30, 2025.
  13. "AAI launches Immunology Explained to help the public understand the science behind their health". EurekAlert!. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  14. "AAI Membership". American Association of Immunologists. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  15. "All Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine". The Nobel Prize. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  16. "All Nobel Prizes in Chemistry". The Nobel Prize. Retrieved July 1, 2022.