On 1 November 2025 Akos Heinemann became Vice Rector of Research at the Medical University of Graz. The expert in pharmacology conducts research on molecular mechanisms that regulate inflammation and immunopharmacology. He succeeds Christian Enzinger in this office and is responsible for research agendas in the Rectorate. "Akos Heinemann stands for excellent research and a strong linkage between basic science and clinical application," says Rector Andrea Kurz. “I am looking forward to working with him and am convinced that he will advance the research agenda of Med Uni Graz with vision and innovative power.”
Biography
Akos Heinemann is a university professor of pharmacology and director of the Otto Loewi Research Center at the Medical University of Graz. After receiving a medical degree from the University of Graz, he devoted himself to experimental and clinical pharmacology. A research stay at Imperial College London shaped his international orientation and laid the basis for his global scientific networking in pharmacology.
His research concentrates on molecular mechanisms that regulate inflammation, immunopharmacology and vascular biology—topics that meet at the interface of basic research and clinical application. In numerous research projects supported by public funding authorities and industrial partners, his working group has investigated how signal transduction in pharmacology and immune responses act in combination and what significance this interaction has for pulmonary and vascular health.
In addition to his scientific work, he is heavily involved in promotion of junior researchers and structural development. He has supervised a multitude of dissertations and for many years he was also the speaker for the international PhD program Molecular Medicine (MolMed) and the FWF sponsored doctoral college DK-MOLIN, both of which have contributed to the international visibility of doctoral education at Med Uni Graz. His research group is integrated into numerous European cooperation projects, and he is regarded as a driving force in linking clinical and preclinical research following the One Health concept.
