Dr. David Ho Receives CUAFA 2025 Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award
During the 4th Annual CUAFA Gala Dinner on March 1st, 2025, Dr. David Ho received the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to science and medicine. A pioneering figure in HIV/AIDS research and Director of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, Dr. Ho has exemplified a lifetime of innovation, leadership, and service. The award was presented by University Professor Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, Chair of the CUAFA Awards Committee, and Dr. Ho’s reflections on his journey offered a memorable and uplifting moment in the evening’s program.
Dr. Vunjak-Novakovic presented the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. Ho.
Below are the remarks delivered by Professor Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic as she presented the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. David Ho.
Dr. Ho is the founding Director of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center and a professor in our Department of Medicine and Microbiology and Immunology, since 2019.
Dr Ho was born in Taiwan in 1952 and immigrated to the United States at age of 13. He trained to become a clinician scientist, first at the Caltech and Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, and then at UCLA School of Medicine and Mass General Hospital. During his residency, he came into contact with some of the first cases of a mysterious disease that was later identified as AIDS and related to HIV. Realizing the challenge and criticality of understanding this terrible disease, he made it his career choice.
Dr Ho is a world’s premier virologist who has developed the treatment regime that has made this deadly disease into a chronic and manageable condition. His insights into the virus transmission have led into the combinatorial antiviral drug regimens designed to suppress virus replication and prevent the emergence of drug-resistant variants. While developing these life-saving treatments, he also served as a passionate advocate for targeting and treating HIV during the very early phase, to prevent damage to the immune system.
Dr Ho served as advisor to Asian countries hit by the SARS epidemic during early 2000s. This experience was most helpful for stepping in to manage the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. He assembled a multi-disciplinary team of Columbia physicians, scientists and engineers and they identified a particularly broad and potent panel of antibodies SARS-CoVID, that are currently in clinical development. His lab is diligently studying the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the new solutions to its testing, treatment, and prevention.
Despite all of his amazing accomplishments, Dr Ho is quite understated, and this sets him apart and makes him an exceptional role model for our scientists and trainees.
David, on behalf of the CUAFA Awards Committee, it is my pleasure to present to you the Lifetime Achievement Award.
CUAFA extends its deep appreciation to the Awards Committee for their thoughtful selection process and dedicated service: Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic (Chair), Cory Abate-Shen, Yiping W. Han, Sankar Ghosh, Gerard Karsenty, Anil K. Lalwani, Andy Marks, Mae Ngai, Liang Tong, Yuan Yang and Harris H. Wang.
