Professor Bouke de Jong receives the 2026 Gardner Middlebrook Award from the European Society of Mycobacteriology
It is a recognition that is more than deserved: Professor Bouke de Jong, Head of the Unit of Mycobacteriology at ITM, has received the prestigious 2026 Gardner Middlebrook Award from the European Society of Mycobacteriology (ESM). The award was presented during the ESM Annual Congress, which took place from 22 to 25 June 2026 in Verona, Italy. It honours her decades-long commitment to the field and the lasting impact she has made on mycobacteriology worldwide.
The Gardner Middlebrook Lifetime Achievement Award honours scientists who have made significant contributions throughout their careers to improving the diagnosis and treatment of mycobacterial diseases. The award has been presented to a select group of microbiologists and immunologists in the area of mycobacterial diseases since 1996. It is named after Gardner Middlebrook (1915–1986), a US physician, professor and internationally renowned tuberculosis expert known for his dedication to biomedical research.
In 2005, Prof Françoise Portaels, Bouke de Jong's predecessor at ITM, also received the award, proving ITM's long-standing leadership in mycobacterial research.
“Receiving this prize is a tremendous honour, and I am pleased to receive it from a society of my peers with whom I share a passion for this subject, and joy in contributing to our shared endeavour of discovery.”
Bouke de Jong
Professor of Mycobacteriology
Professor de Jong has been leading the Unit of Mycobacteriology since 2010. She studied clinical infectious diseases and has dedicated her career to combating TB in some of the world's most affected regions. Her work focuses on molecular epidemiology, diagnostics, and drug resistance, while also addressing other mycobacterial diseases such as leprosy and Buruli ulcer.
The Unit of Mycobacteriology combines research, diagnostics, and capacity strengthening to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of mycobacterial diseases. It provides specialised diagnostic services for individual patients and conducts research that challenges existing control approaches and advances understanding of these diseases.
Under Professor de Jong's leadership, the Unit has further grown as a global reference centre. It serves as a WHO Supranational TB Reference Laboratory and maintains the world's largest collection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains. Beyond her research activities, she is deeply committed to education and capacity sharing, serving as co-coordinator of ITM's Master of Science in Tropical Medicine and an international course on drug-resistant TB.
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