The American Association of Immunologists

K. Frank Austen, M.D.

Brief Bio

K. Frank Austen (1928–2023) was the Astra Zeneca Professor of Respiratory and Inflammatory Diseases in the Department of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital. He was president of The American Association of Immunologists from 1977 to 1978 and served on the AAI Council from 1972 to 1976. Dr. Austen was elected a Distinguished Fellow of AAI in 2019.

Oral History - Full Interview

Interview Date: Friday, May 4, 2012
Location: Boston, MA

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Oral History - Transcript

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Oral History - Clips

Family Background (2:02)
Harvard Medical School and Training in Polio Treatment (12:05)
Specializing in Immunology (4:10)
Research Highlights (5:23)
Disappointments and Dead Ends (1:16)

Reflections on AAI in the Early 1960s (1:34)
State of Science in the United States Today (2:31)
Would You Recommend a Career in Immunology to Trainees? (1:15)
Balancing Professional and Family Life (1:16)
Women in AAI and Immunology (2:09)

AAI Service History

Joined: 1962
President: 1977–1978
Vice President: 1976–1977
Councillor: 1972–1976

The Journal of Immunology
Associate Editor: 1968–1977

Committees
Standing Education Committee: 1968–1970
Ad Hoc Steering Committee for International Congress: 1968–1969
Education Committee: 1970–1972
Ad Hoc Committee on Public Relations: 1972–1973
Awards Committee: 1979–1980

Other Service
AAI Representative to the FASEB Public Affairs Committee: 1971–1974
AAI Representative to National Research Council: 1973–1976
AAI Representative to the IUIS Nomenclature Committee: 1973–1974
AAI Representative to FASEB Board: 1976–1979

President's Address

"Homeostasis of Effector Systems Which Can Also Be Recruited for Immunologic Reactions," Delivered June 6, 1978

The Journal of Immunology 121, no. 3 (1978): 793–805.

Awards and Honors

Member, National Academy of Sciences, 1974
Gairdner International Award, 1977
Member, Institute of Medicine, 1991
Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, 1998
George M. Kober Medal, Association of American Physicians, 2004
Distinguished Fellow, AAI, 2019