Dr. Margaret "Peggy" Irene Johnston (born 1950)
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https://www.genomebc.ca/board/margaret-peggy-johnston
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Margaret (Peggy) Johnston
Vice Chair
Independent Consultant
Former Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Dr. Margaret (Peggy) Johnston, an independent consultant, previously served as Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where she oversaw the HIV team’s advanced clinical development grant portfolio, and played a key role in representing the foundation with private and government partners.
Prior to working at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, she held the position of Director, Vaccine Research Program, Division of AIDS, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) (1998-2010). In this capacity, she led NIAID’s extramural HIV vaccine research grant and contract programs totaling over $250 million a year to support HIV vaccine discovery, preclinical evaluation and development, and clinical research, including NIH’s multi-center, international HIV Vaccine Trials Network, the Center for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Immunology and an interagency agreement with the Military HIV Research Program. She also served as NIH’s representative to the Global HIV/AIDS Vaccine Enterprise Science Committee as well as several non-US HIV vaccine advisory groups.
Dr. Johnston has been involved in HIV research since 1998, holding positions of increasing responsibility in the Division of AIDS (1987-95) and serving as the founding Scientific Director of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (1996-98). Before HIV/AIDS she was following an academic research/teaching career that included positions at the Rega Institute in Belgium, the National Institutes of Health, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.
Dr. Johnston earned a BS in chemistry from Carnegie-Mellon University (CMU) and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Tufts University. Her honors include an Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award from CMU, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service, two NIH Director’s Awards, five NIH Merit Awards, and several non-government awards and citations, reflecting her contributions to the fields of HIV/AIDS therapeutics, vaccine and prevention research and development.
class of 1972 ... BS ... means born around 1950 ..
Margaret I. Johnston (S 1972)
2012 Alumni Lifetime (Distinguished) Achievement Award
Bio
https://www.cmu.edu/engage/alumni-awards-recipients/bio-johnston-margaret.html
Dr. Margaret Johnston (S'72) saw her 23 years in the field of AIDS research hit an incredible high point Sept. 24, as the first successful human trial for an AIDS vaccine was announced.
The vaccine achieved a 30 percent infection prevention rate, and, while modest, it gives future researchers significant tools for creating a more effective vaccine.
Had it not been for Johnston, the vaccine trial leading to this critical finding may not have happened. Johnston serves as the director of the Vaccine Research Program within the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases' (NIAID) Division of AIDS.
The vaccine trial was publicly opposed by 21 respected scientists as a 'waste of the government's money.' Johnston and three colleagues published a rebuttal in the same leading scientific journal, and the NIAID — through Johnston's program — funded 75 percent of the project.
"It's going to take a while to build on this promising result," Johnston allowed. "I'm hoping that within my lifetime there will be an AIDS vaccine ready for broad distribution."
Prior to her current position, which she's held for 13 years, Johnston was an instrumental figure in the NIH's drug discovery area.
"I was involved in overseeing, in retrospect, some very important areas of research that laid the foundation for showing that drugs can prevent mother to child transmission of HIV," she recalled.
After nine years there, however, she believed she could make a bigger difference and left NIAID to serve as the founding scientific director of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative before returning to NIAID in her current role.
"I'd been involved in a lot of advances in treating infected people, but there weren't substantial advances in preventing new infections," she explained. "I'd done what I could for therapeutics. What we really need is a vaccine — a proven way to stop the spread of infectious disease."
Given the stakes, Johnston is, at times, embroiled in controversy.
"I've taken my punches along the way, but we always try to do what we think is best for the science," she said. "It's knowing that I am part of a team that is tackling one of the most challenging public health problems that ever existed. I'd rather fail at something really big, than succeed at something nobody cares about."
Johnston acknowledges those around her who have made significant contributions to the field, such as fellow alum Stephen Lagakos, who recently passed away.
"We have lost a giant in the field," she said. Lagakos is credited with organizing one of the first AIDS centers in the nation and designing many of the initial nationwide clinical trials to find therapies to treat AIDS.
Johnston views her Carnegie Mellon experience as instrumental.
"The direction my career took is nothing that I ever envisioned when I was studying chemistry at Carnegie Mellon, but it gave me the foundation on which to build. I'm thankful for that," she said. "I also appreciated the diversity of the campus in terms of people and their experiences and their interests. That enabled me to have a career in which I embrace diversity."
Reflecting on her time here, she added, "It's one of the best decisions I've ever made."
https://www.shifthealth.com/people-culture/margaret-peggy-johnston/
Dr. Margaret (Peggy) Johnston is currently an independent consultant working with profit and non-profit clients to further their business objectives. Peggy previously served as Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where she oversaw the HIV team’s advanced vaccine clinical development, laboratory and statistical support grants, and helped represent the foundation to private and government partners.
Peggy previously held the position of Director, Vaccine Research Program, Division of AIDS, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) (1998-2010). In this capacity, she led NIAID’s extramural HIV vaccine research grant and contract programs totaling over $250 million a year to support HIV vaccine discovery, preclinical evaluation and development, and clinical research, including NIH’s multi-center, international HIV Vaccine Trials Network, the Center for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Immunology and an interagency agreement with the Military HIV Research Program. She also served as NIH’s representative to the Global HIV/AIDS Vaccine Enterprise Science Committee as well as several non-US HIV vaccine advisory groups. Peggy became involved in HIV research in 1998, holding positions of increasing responsibility in the Division of AIDS (1987-95) and serving as the founding Scientific Director of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (1996-98). Before HIV/AIDS she was following an academic research/teaching career that included positions at the Rega Institute in Belgium, the National Institutes of Health, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.
Peggy earned a BS in chemistry from Carnegie-Mellon University (CMU) and a PhD in biochemistry from Tufts University. Her honors include an Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award from CMU, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service (team award), two NIH Director’s Awards, five NIH Merit Awards, and several non-government awards and citations, reflecting her contributions to the fields of HIV/AIDS therapeutics, vaccine and prevention research and development. Peggy, a US citizen, resides in Vancouver and Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada.
Margaret I Johnston I
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Name:
Margaret I Johnston I
[M I Johnston I]
[Margaret Johnston I]
[Margaret J Johnston I]
Birth Date:
Oct 1950
Residence Date:
2003-2019
Address:
6011 Utah Ave NW
Residence:
Washington, District of Columbia, USA
Postal Code:
20015
Second Residence Date:
1989-2004
Second Address:
6 Tivoli Lake CT
Second Residence:
Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Second Postal Code:
20906
Third Residence Date:
1999-2003
Third Address:
6 Tivoli CT
Third Residence:
Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Third Postal Code:
20906
Fourth Address:
4405 Phinney Ave N
Fourth Residence:
Seattle, Washington, USA
Fourth Postal Code:
98103
Dr Margaret I Johnston
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Add or update information
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Name:
Dr Margaret I Johnston
[Dr Margaret Johnston]
Birth Date:
7 Oct 1950
Residence Date:
1992
Phone Number:
933-4883
Address:
6 Tivoli Lake CT
Residence:
Silver Spring, MD
Postal Code:
20906-5904
Second Phone Number:
933-4883
Second Address:
2707 Blaine Dr
Second Residence:
Chevy Chase, MD
Second Postal Code:
20815-3041
Third Residence Date:
1985
Third Phone Number:
933-4883
Third Address:
2214 Washington Ave Apt 201
Third Residence:
Silver Spring, MD
Third Postal Code:
20910-2623
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Margaret Irene Johnston
Science association administrator
Margaret Irene Johnston, American Science association administrator. Recipient Merit award National Institutes of Health, 1991, Outstanding Performance awards, 1989, 90, National Research Svc. award, 1978, Outstanding Performance award Uniformed Superior vena cava syndrome U., 1987, Invention award Public Health Svc., 1987, Undergraduate award American Chemical Society, 1972.
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