Blood smears combined with immunofluorescence facilitate diagnosis in patients suspected for inherited platelet disorders

Speakers: Andreas Greinacher

Dr. Andreas Greinacher, specialized for transfusion medicine, immunohematology and hemostasis, is full professor and head of the department of transfusion medicine and the thrombosis and hemostasis service at the Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, Germany.

His research interests are hereditary and immune mediated thrombocytopenias, especially heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and application of biophysics to understand molecular mechanisms of antigenicity of endogenous proteins. He has identified the genetic basis of the HNA-3a antigen, an important cause of TRALI, developed a new treatment approach during the EHEC outbreak in Germany in 2011, and contributed to better understanding of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia. He was the principal investigator of the studies leading to approval of recombinant hirudin as the first non-heparin/warfarin anticoagulant. During the last years, his work on vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) received major attention by the scientific community and the general public. He has published more than 500 papers on these topics and has received several national and international awards.