Christine Stabell Benn - Biography#

Christine Stabell Benn is a medical doctor (1996), PhD (2003) and Doctor of Medical Science (2011) from University of Copenhagen. She has worked at the Bandim Health Project in Guinea-Bissau (BHP, www.bandim.org) since 1993, starting as a medical student.

Dr. Benn came to the BHP with her own idea: To test in a randomised trial the impact of vitamin A supplementation on the immune response to measles vaccine. The trial showed that vitamin A supplementation, at that time used to prevent blindness, enhanced the antibody response to measles vaccine, particularly in boys (Benn et al, Lancet 1997). This kick-started Dr. Benn's research interest in how to optimise child health intervention programs, taking into account specific and non-specific effects of interventions on the immune system in both sexes.

Dr. Benn has spent postdoc time at the Danish National Hospital, Department for Infectious Diseases and at Stanford University. In 2010 Dr. Benn received an ERC Starting Grant. In 2012, Dr. Benn was selected by the Danish National Research Foundation to establish and lead a Center of Excellence, the “Research Center for Vitamins and Vaccines”. Since 2013, Dr. Benn is also Professor in Global Health at University of Southern Denmark.

Dr. Benn is now a world leading and agenda setting authority within vaccinology and vitamin A supplementation. She is the author of 288 scientific articles, many in high impact journals.