Bonnie Jean Mathieson (May 10, 1945 – January 8, 2018) was an American

biomedical scientist A biomedical scientist is a scientist trained in biology, particularly in the context of medical laboratory sciences or laboratory medicine. These scientists work to gain knowledge on the main principles of how the human body works and to find new w ...

and pioneer in HIV vaccine research. Mathieson worked at the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

(NIH) for 43 years. She played a fundamental role in NIH HIV/AIDS research, vaccine programs, and scientific policy.

Early life and education

Mathieson was born May 10, 1945. She was the oldest of seven siblings. They were raised on a farm in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. She completed a Bachelor of Science in botany from

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

in 1967. She researched retrovirology, immunology, and genetics at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

where she completed a master's degree in medical microbiology. In 1975, Mathieson earned a doctor philosophy in biology from the

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute– ...

and

Weill Cornell Medicine The Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University is Cornell University's biomedical research unit and medical school located in Upper East Side, Manhattan, New York City, New York. Weill Cornell Medicine is affiliated with NewY ...

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

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. Her dissertation was titled ''Selective expression of surface components on differentiated cells of the mouse: immunoselection of Y-bearing sperm in an in vitro fertilization system and expression of the thymocyte surface markers G(IX), TL and LY in tetraparental mice''. She was a post-doctoral researcher and staff fellow at

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, ) is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). NIAID's ...

(NIAID) where she researched lymphocyte surface markers and T cell subsets from 1975 to 1982.

Career

Mathieson researched T and B lymphocytes at

Basel Institute for Immunology The Basel Institute for Immunology (BII) was founded in 1969 as a basic research institute in immunology located at 487 Grenzacherstrasse, Basel, Switzerland on the Rhine River down the street from the main Hoffmann-La Roche campus near the Swiss-G ...

as a member from 1982 to 1983. From 1983 to 1989, she studied NK cells and T cell subsets as the head of a laboratory in the Biological Response Modifiers Program at the NCI-Frederick. Mathieson served as a program officer in the Vaccine Branch in the Division of AIDS in NIAID from 1989 to 1995. As a program officer, she developed funding opportunity announcements for HIV vaccine, immunology, and pediatric AIDS research. Mathieson is a past chair of the HIV/AIDS Vaccine Coordinating Committee in the Office of AIDS Research (OAR). She was on the WHO-UNAIDS Vaccine Advisory Committee for seven years. Mathieson also served on review boards for the World Health Organization, European Commission, Canada and the Gates Foundation. She published more than 125 articles and chapters. She served as a health scientist administrator in OAR. She was the lead for HIV/AIDS vaccines at OAR and advanced the NIH AIDS vaccine program through supporting vaccine trials and developing a vaccine scholars program designed to train young scientists. Mathieson was an advocate for young people, women, and early-career investigators. Her colleagues knew her as an international leader in the HIV vaccine field and a supporter of research to prevent HIV and improve the health and outcomes of people living with HIV. Mathieson retired from the National Institutes of Health on December 29, 2017. She had a 43 year long career at the NIH.

Awards and honors

Mathieson routinely received performance awards during her tenure at NIH. She won an Alumnus Award from Weill Cornell Medical College.

Personal life

Mathieson was married to Donald and had a daughter and son. She died unexpectedly on January 8, 2018, while snorkeling in

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when she had a massive heart attack. A memorial service was held at the Woodend. Mathieson was survived by her husband, children, grandchildren, and five siblings. She was preceded in death by one sister.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathieson, Bonnie 1945 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists 20th-century American biologists 21st-century American biologists American women biologists Scientists from Illinois National Institutes of Health people HIV/AIDS researchers Weill Cornell Medical College alumni University of Illinois alumni Stanford University alumni American medical researchers Women medical researchers