FEMS-Lwoff Award for Achievements in Microbiology
Launched in 2000, the FEMS-Lwoff Award for Achievements in Microbiology rewards those that create high quality knowledge that helps to solve today’s societal problems around microbiology. It was named in honour of the 1st FEMS President (1974-1976), Professor André M. Lwoff.
Winners receive:
- a prize-lecture at the FEMS Congress – with up to five free registrations to the FEMS Congress
- the opportunity to present research to the wider microbiology community via the FEMS Journals and FEMS communication channels
- a commemorative silver medal
- an honorarium of €1000
Making a nomination
Everyone in the field of microbiology (societies, groups, or individuals) may nominate a Lwoff Award candidate to be presented at the FEMS Congress.
Do you know anyone – either an individual or a group – who has provided outstanding service to microbiology in Europe? Have they done something that deserves recognition? Then why not nominate them for the FEMS-Lwoff Award?
Additional information about the selection procedure can be found in the FEMS-Lwoff Award regulations.
The deadline for nominations for the FEMS-Lwoff Award 2025 is closed.
Nominate someone for the FEMS-Lwoff Award
We foster an atmosphere of inclusion and equal opportunities and place a high value on ensuring we reflect the diversity of the microbiological community throughout our organization and in what we do. We warmly welcome nominations that will recognize scientists from underrepresented groups.
| FEMS-Lwoff awardees | |
2023 Awardee |
2021 Awardee |
 Prof. Kenneth Timmis
Prize Lecture: Microbiology Literacy And Human Stewardship Of Planet Earth: The Generational Contract |
 Prof. E. Charpentier, France
Prize Lecture: Crispr-Cas-9: Transforming Life Sciences Through Bacteria |
2019 Awardee |
2017 Awardee |
 Prof. P. Cossart, France
Prize Lecture: The model organism Listeria monocytogenes: towards the complete understanding of it physiology and its virulence |
 Prof. J. Errington, United Kingdom
Prize Lecture: Cell wall deficient (L-form) bacteria: from chronic infections to the origins of life |
2015 Awardees |
|
 Prof. F. Baquero, Spain
Prize Lecture: Transmission: a basic process in Microbiology |
 Prof R.K. Thauer, Germany
Prize Lecture: The microbial methane cycle |
2013 Awardee |
2011 Awardee |
 Prof. Juan Luis Ramos, Granada
Prize Lecture: Mechanism of Solvent Tolerance in Gram Negative Bacteria |
Miroslav Radman, Croatia
Venue: Geneva, Switzerland, 4th FEMS Congress |
2009 Awardee |
2006 Awardee |
 Karl-Heinz Schleifer, GermanyPrize Lecture: Classification of Bacteria: From Unicellular Plants to the Age of Genomics Venue: Gothenburg, Sweden, at the occasion of the 3rd FEMS Congress Date: 1 July 2009 |
 Jorg Hacker, GermanyPrize Lecture: Evolution in Microbial Pathogens Venue: Madrid, Spain, at the occasion of the 2nd FEMS Congress Date: 6 July 2006 |
2003 Awardee |
2000 Awardee |
 Prof. Sir David A. Hopwood, United KingdomPrize Lecture: Streptomyces Genes in Nature and Medicine Venue: Ljubljana, Slovenia, at the occasion of the 1st FEMS Congress Date: 2 July 2003 |
 Prof. Philippe J. Sansonetti, FrancePrize Lecture: Rupture, invasion and inflammatory destruction of the intestinal barrier by Shigella, making sense of prokaryote-eukaryote cross-talks. Venue: Sevilla, Spain, at the occasion of the FEMS Jubilee Date: 15 September 2000 |
All but one of the FEMS journals are now fully open access (OA), with one journal, FEMS Microbiology Letters remaining a subscription journal with free-to-publish and OA options. Open access is key to supporting the FEMS mission of disseminating high quality research as widely as possible: when high quality, peer reviewed sound science is open access, anyone, anywhere in the world with an internet connection, can read it.
