Background Information

Jane Buckner is the President of the Benaroya Research Institute, an affiliate Professor at the University of Washington and practicing rheumatologist. She is known for her research in translational immunology, combining genetics, immunology and clinical medicine to advance the understanding of the causes of autoimmune diseases. At the Benaroya Research Institute, Dr. Buckner was instrumental in developing the translational immunology research program and establishing the BRI biorepository, which currently includes more than 350,000 samples from 14,000 participants. Dr. Buckner has made significant contributions to our understanding of how human T cells are dysregulated in type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis and has been a pioneer in the development of antigen-specific Treg therapies. Dr. Buckner is the inaugural holder of the Gerald Nepom Endowed Chair at BRI. She also leads the Coordinating Center of the Immune Tolerance Network, an NIH funded collaborative network for clinical research, and is a scientific advisor for Type 1 Diabetes TrialNet, an NIH-funded clinical trial network for type 1 diabetes prevention and early treatment. She is the current chair of the NIH/NIAMS Board of Scientific Counselors and served as the chair of the NIH/NIAID Cooperative Study Group for Autoimmune Disease Prevention. Dr. Buckner received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Carleton College, her MD from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, her residency in Internal Medicine at University of Minnesota and a rheumatology fellowship at the University of Washington. Dr. Buckner has received multiple awards including the American College of Rheumatology Arthritis Investigator Award and is the 2024 recipient of the American Association of Immunologists Steinman Award for Human Immunology Research.