The Cluster of Excellence RESIST is represented by its speaker Prof. Dr. Reinhold Förster and its two co-speakers Prof. Dr. Thomas Schulz and Prof. Dr. Gesine Hansen. On this page you will find further information about them and their contact details.
Prof. Dr. Reinhold Förster
Speaker of the Cluster of Excellence RESIST
| With our research in RESIST we also want to help older people. Many of them are particularly susceptible to infections and vaccinations of seniors are often not sufficient enough. |
Prof. Förster is head of the Institute of Immunology at Hannover Medical School since 2001. He has many years of experience as speaker of the Collaborative Research Centre 621 and as co-speaker of the Cluster of Excellence RESIST and as a co-speaker of the Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH. His own RESIST research focuses, among other things, on the susceptibility of elderly people to herpes virus infections.
Prof. Dr. med. Lars Dölken
Co-Speaker of the Cluster of Excellence RESIST
| At the heart of RESIST are the patients. We want to help them more efficiently – by closely integrating cutting-edge basic research and clinical science. |
Prof. Dölken has been head of the Institute of Virology at Hannover Medical School since April 2024. He has also been RESIST co-spokesperson since 2026. Previously, from 2015 to 2024, he was Professor of Virology and Director of Virology and Immunology at Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg. His own RESIST research focuses on the cell biology of interactions between herpes viruses and hosts, as well as viral immune defense.
Prof. Dr. Gesine Hansen
Co-speaker of the Cluster of Excellence RESIST
| We want to help people who are at particularly high risk for serious infections. Premature babies are particularly at risk. But we also take this challenge. |
Prof. Hansen is the director of the Clinic for Paediatric Pneumology, Allergology and Neonatology at Hannover Medical School. She has many years of experience as a (co-)speaker of different research groups. With her research in RESIST she aims to provide best possible care to the youngest. She is particularly interested in infections of newborns.