Prof. Ulrike Protzer from the Technical University of Munich as well as Prof. Oliver T. Keppler and Prof. Michael Hoelscher from the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) were honored by Bavarian Minister President Markus Söder with the Bavarian Order of Merit for their efforts in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
As a sign of honorable and grateful recognition for outstanding services to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people, the three scientists from life sciences received the Bavarian Order of Merit.
Virologist Prof. Ulrike Protzer from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has dedicated herself with great effort to SARS-CoV-2 research and elucidation over the past two years. As one of a total of 50 "courage makers," Bavarian Minister President Dr. Markus Söder named her in his speech at the award ceremony in the Antiquarium of the Munich Residence. Prof. Ulrike Protzer has held the chair of virology at TUM since 2007 and has since been director of the Institute of Virology at TUM and Helmholtz Zentrum München.
"I am very proud to have received this high honor! I see it as recognition for my team and its tireless efforts in COVID-19 diagnostics and combating the pandemic, and I am very, very grateful to have such highly motivated staff," said Prof. Protzer following the award ceremony.
Prof. Oliver T. Keppler, virologist and director at the Max von Pettenkofer Institute for Hygiene and Medical Microbiology (LMU), has helped as a fellow campaigner in the fight against the spread of the disease since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, including as an advisor to the Bavarian state government, Söder said in his laudation.
"To support the Free State and the people of Bavaria in the corona virus pandemic and to be awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit for this by the Bavarian Prime Minister is a great honor. In addition to gratitude and joy, I also feel this honor as an incentive and responsibility to continue on this path," Prof. Keppler was pleased about the award of the order.
Prof. Michael Hoelscher, a specialist in tropical medicine and head of the Department of Infectious and Tropical Medicine at the University Hospital in Munich (LMU), was honored for his commitment to improving health care in Africa during the Corona pandemic. In addition, he had provided his expertise as a member of the Bavarian State Government's Council of Experts since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and had made an important contribution to combating the pandemic. At his institute, an infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus was diagnosed for the first time in a patient in Germany in 2020.
The Bavarian Minister President saw the award as a signal in difficult times, when motivation and hope are needed. He said that all those who received the Order stood for a modern, sustainable, charitable and highly scientific Bavaria.
The Bavarian Order of Merit in the form of a Maltese Cross is the Free State's highest honor and is awarded each year to selected personalities from the fields of sports, science and culture. In total, only two thousand living persons are allowed to wear this award.