{{Short description|American immunologist (1937–2026)}} {{Sources|date=April 2026}} {{Infobox scientist | name = Barry R. Bloom | image = <!--(freely licensed photo filename only)--> | image_size = | alt = | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date|1937|04|13}} | birth_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania<ref>[https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1277/records/6393616 New York State, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1917-1967]</ref> | death_date = {{death date and age|2026|3|18|1937|04|13}} | death_place = Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. | fields = Public health; Immunology; Infectious disease | workplaces = Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health <br> Albert Einstein College of Medicine | education = Amherst College <br> Rockefeller University | known_for = Immunology of tuberculosis, leprosy, malaria, and vaccines; Dean of Harvard School of Public Health | awards = Bristol-Myers Squibb Award for Distinguished Research in Infectious Diseases (first awardee); Robert Koch Medal; Novartis Award for Clinical Immunology }}

'''Barry Robert Bloom''' (April 13, 1937 – March 18, 2026) was an American immunologist known for his research on the immune response to infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, leprosy, malaria, and COVID-19. He was the Joan L. and Julius H. Jacobson Professor of Public Health, Emeritus in the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases and the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where he served as dean of the faculty from 1998 through 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Barry R. Bloom |url=https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/profile/barry-r-bloom/ |website=Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health |date=5 January 2021 |access-date=31 August 2024}}</ref>

== Early life and education == Bloom stated that the influence of the numerous physicians in his family led him to expect a medical career, before choosing immunology research instead.<ref>[https://www.aai.org/About/History/History-Articles-Keep-for-Hierarchy/AAI-Oral-History-Project-An-Interview-with-Dr-Ba Emrich R, Richter C. (eds.) Profiles in Leadership: An Interview with Dr. Barry Bloom. ''The American Association of Immunologists''. October 2020. Accessed 16 May 2021.]</ref>

* A.B. (Biology), Amherst College, 1958 * Ph.D. (Immunology), Rockefeller University, 1963

== Academic career == From 1978 to 1990, Bloom was chairman of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. In 1990, he became an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, also serving on its national advisory board. In 1978 he acted as a consultant to the White House on international health policy.<ref name="HarvardProfile">{{Cite web |title=Barry R. Bloom |url=https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/profile/barry-r-bloom/ |website=Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health |date=5 January 2021 |access-date=31 August 2024}}</ref>

As dean of the Harvard School of Public Health (1998–2008), Bloom also served as secretary-treasurer of the Association of Schools of Public Health. He has held faculty appointments in the Departments of Immunology and Infectious Diseases and of Global Health and Population.

== Research contributions == Bloom was a leading scientist in immunology and global health. Much of his laboratory research focused on host immune responses to ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'', defining vitamin D-dependent antimicrobial mechanisms in macrophages and developing aerosolized nanoparticle vaccine approaches.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20140928222054/http://www.grandchallenges.org/Pages/Default.aspx Grand Challenges in Global Health]. Gates Foundation (archived 28 September 2014).</ref><ref>[https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2005/08/gates-foundation-awards-two-harvard-investigators-26-million/ Powell A. "Gates Foundation awards two Harvard investigators $26 million." ''Harvard Gazette''. 25 August 2005.]</ref>

He chaired the WHO Technical and Research Advisory Committee to the Global Programme on Malaria, contributing to international strategies for malaria control and vaccine research.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Faculty profile – Barry Bloom |date=7 August 2024 |url=https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/barry-bloom/ |access-date=22 September 2025}}</ref> He also chaired WHO committees on leprosy and tuberculosis research, and served on the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee of the UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bloom provided expert analysis on vaccines and public health policy in national media and at Harvard press conferences.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coronavirus (COVID-19): Press Conference with Barry Bloom |url=https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/features/coronavirus-covid-19-press-conference-with-barry-bloom-11-16-20/ |date=16 November 2020 |access-date=27 November 2020 |website=Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health}}</ref> In 2020 he was appointed to the Massachusetts state advisory committee on coronavirus vaccines.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Charlie Baker names 17-member coronavirus vaccine advisory group |url=https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/10/11/baker-names-17-member-coronavirus-vaccine-advisory-group/ |work=Boston Herald |date=11 October 2020 |access-date=27 November 2020}}</ref>

== Policy and advisory roles == Bloom was involved with the World Health Organization for more than four decades, serving on multiple advisory committees. He was the founding chair of the board of trustees for the International Vaccine Institute in South Korea, chaired the Vaccine Advisory Committee of UNAIDS, and was a member of the U.S. AIDS Research Committee. He served on scientific advisory boards for the Ellison Medical Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and the Paul G. Rogers Society for Global Health Research.

== Personal life == Bloom was married to Irene (Tilenius) Bloom (who died in 2010), and they had a daughter Inae<ref>[https://hsph.harvard.edu/immunology-infectious-diseases/news/celebrating-dr-barry-blooms-extraordinary-legacy/ Paradissis-Healy M. Celebrating Dr. Barry Bloom’s Extraordinary Legacy. IID page of HSPH web portal. May 14, 2026]</ref> and a son Eric.

== Death == Bloom died of pancreatic cancer at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on March 18, 2026, at the age of 88.<ref name="Stat">{{cite news |last1=Lipsitch |first1=Marc |last2=Grad |first2=Yonatan |title=Remembering public health pioneer Barry Bloom: a scientist, a mentor, a mensch |url=https://www.statnews.com/2026/03/30/barry-bloom-obituary-public-health-immunology-tribute/ |access-date=31 March 2026 |publisher=Stat |date=30 March 2026}}</ref>

== Selected publications == * Bloom BR, Bennett B. "Mechanism of a reaction in vitro associated with delayed-type hypersensitivity." ''Science''. 1966;153(3731):80–82. * Modlin RL, Bloom BR. "Immunologic mechanisms in leprosy." ''Annual Review of Immunology''. 1984;2:41–60. * Liu PT, Stenger S, Li H, Wenzel L, Tan BH, Krutzik SR, Ochoa MT, Schauber J, Wu K, Meinken C, Kamen DL, Wagner M, Bals R, Steinmeyer A, Zügel U, Gallo RL, Eisenberg D, Hewison M, Hollis BW, Adams JS, Bloom BR, Modlin RL. "Toll-like receptor triggering of a vitamin D–mediated human antimicrobial response." ''Science''. 2006;311(5768):1770–1773. * {{cite book | last1 = Bloom | first1 = Barry R. | last2 = Lambert | first2 = Paul-Henri | title = The Vaccine Book | edition = 2nd | publisher = Academic Press (Elsevier) | location = San Diego | date = 23 June 2016 | pages = 664 | isbn = 978-0-12-802174-3 | url = https://www.sciencedirect.com/book/9780121072582/the-vaccine-book | access-date = 22 September 2025 }}

A more complete list of publications is available at [https://connects.catalyst.harvard.edu/Profiles/display/Person/25068 Harvard Catalyst].

== Awards and honors == * Bristol-Myers Squibb Award for Distinguished Research in Infectious Diseases (first awardee) * Novartis Award for Clinical Immunology (1998, shared) * Robert Koch Medal for lifetime research in infectious diseases (1999) * Elected member, National Academy of Sciences * Elected member, National Academy of Medicine * Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science * Fellow, American Philosophical Society * Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology

== References == {{Reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bloom, Barry}} Category:1937 births Category:2026 deaths Category:American immunologists Category:Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health faculty Category:Albert Einstein College of Medicine faculty Category:Amherst College alumni Category:Rockefeller University alumni Category:Central High School (Philadelphia) alumni Category:Howard Hughes Medical Investigators Category:Malariologists Category:HIV/AIDS researchers Category:Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology Category:Members of the National Academy of Medicine Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Category:Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Category:Members of the American Philosophical Society