In the 1980s Dr. Francis (Frank) Plummer changed the way the world perceived HIV/AIDS and charted a path toward prevention and treatment. Dr. Plummer was a UM graduate (MD/76), Canada Distinguished Professor of Medical Microbiology and Research in Infection Resistance and Susceptibility. His tenure of research has informed the development of treatments and public health strategies to control infectious diseases, including SARS, H1N1 and Ebola that are still in use around the world today.
The bust of Dr. Plummer at Innovation Plaza.
Dr. Plummer was immortalized last week with a new bust unveiled in Innovation Plaza to inspire students and faculty with a tangible reminder of the highest level of excellence at UM. “Dr. Frank Plummer was the model of research excellence to which we all aspire,” says Dr. Digvir Jayas, UM Vice President (Research and International); “From Winnipeg to Nairobi and around the world his contributions have saved the lives of tens of thousands of people and it’s great to see him join the distinguished team here at Innovation Plaza.”
The other researchers appearing in the square are Dr. John M. Bowman, Dr. Baldur Stefansson, Dr. Henry Bruce Chown and Dr. Carol Shields.
Remembering an icon
Frank Plummer was born in Winnipeg in 1952 and received his medical degree from the University of Manitoba in 1976. He continued his training in internal medicine and infectious diseases for many years at the University of Southern California and the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.
Dr. Plummer was just 29 when he took a research position at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, in 1981 as part of a collaboration with the University of Manitoba specializing in sexually transmitted infections. While studying with patients in Nairobi, the research team would uncover a connection in their work to a growing epidemic in Africa.
“Certain sexually transmitted diseases, notably herpes, goiter or syphilis, allow the AIDS virus to be transmitted more effectively,” Dr. Plummer explained in a 1987 CBC interview. “It’s hard to overstate the problem in Central Africa where between 10-20% of young adults are infected with the virus, otherwise healthy and active people.” But Dr. Plummer also found hope.
An ongoing study among sex workers in Nairobi identified a small group who had natural immunity to HIV-1, the virus that leads to AIDS. In the next 17 years, Dr. Plummer and his team will lead the way in the development of the vaccine and life-saving drugs for HIV that have improved the quality of life of people living with HIV.
Dr. Frank Plummer.
After returning to Canada, Dr. Plummer was appointed Scientific Director of the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg in 2000. There, he played a leading role in Canada’s response to the SARS pandemic in 2003 and the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009. He would also help develop the Ebola vaccine used in response in the outbreak in West Africa.
Through his illustrious career, Dr. Plummer also served as a senior scientific advisor to the Public Health Service of Canada and director general of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Ottawa. He was honored with many awards, including Officer of the Order of Canada, the Order of Manitoba, and the McLaughlin and Flavelle Medals of the Royal Society of Canada and four honorary degrees.
Dr. Plummer has also been recognized for outstanding contributions to biological science with the Prix Galien Research Award, the Rh Institute Award, the St. Boniface Hospital Research Foundation International, the Killam Prize from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Canada Gairdner Wightman Award.
Dr. Frank Plummer died suddenly in 2020 while in Nairobi, Kenya to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Manitoba/Kenya research collaboration.
“The breadth of Frank Plummer’s scientific approach was greater than any other scientist I know,” said Keith Fowke, UM Head of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at Research Manitoba. “That’s what made him a great leader in NML, he knew the clinical situation, the epidemiology of the spread of the disease and understood the basic science. Having someone at the top who could see the big picture of infectious diseases was very important.”
Dr. Fowke worked with Dr. Plummer for more than 30 years in Nairobi and Manitoba and suggested that he be honored at the Innovation Plaza. The bust of Dr. Plummer was unveiled by UM president Dr. Michael Benaroch by Dr. Digvir Jayas on September 8, 2022.
The Innovation Plaza was established in 2013 to celebrate and honor University of Manitoba academic staff who have demonstrated sustained excellence and global impact and influence through a body of research, academic work or creative activity with a series of commemorative busts. The project was made possible through the vision and leadership of the Richardson Foundation.
Research at the University of Manitoba is supported in part by funding from the Government of Canada Research Support Fund.
UM Today Staff
