Donald B. Kohn, MD, PhD

Distinguished Professor, Professor, Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, Pediatrics (Hematology/Oncology), Molecular & Medical Pharmacology, Member: Eli & Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cell Research, Tumor Immunology Program at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC), UCLA Chrildren's Discovery and Innovation Institute, Immunity, Microbes & Molecular Pathogenesis GPD Home Area, Molecular Pharmacology GPB Home Area, Genetics & Genomics GPB Home ARea, Center for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Blood and Marrow Transpant Center, CTSI, Pilot and Collaborative Translational Clinical Studies Program 


Donald B. Kohn earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana and his medical degree in 1982 from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine. He completed a pediatric internship and residency in Wisonsin followed by a medical staff fellowship in the Lymphoid Malignancies Branch (formerly the Metabolism Branch) of the National Cancer Institute. He began working on gene therapy as a fellow at the National Institute of Health in 1985. He was at Children’s hospital Los Angeles, USC Keck School of Medicine for 21 years, where he rose to the rank of Professor and sered as the Head of the Division of Research Immunology/Bone Marrow Transplantation from 2002-2009. His research program studies gene therapy using hematopoietic stem cells, performing basic studies of gene trasfer and expression and translating these finding to clinical trials of gene therapy for congenital immunie deficiencies and pediatric AIDS.

Honors:

Dr. Donald B. Kohn was the President of the American Society for Gene Therapy (2003-2004) and was the recipient of an Elizabeth Glaser Scientist Award from the Pediatric AIDS Foundation and a Distinguished Clinical Scientist Award from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.