In Memory of Martin J. Sapp, PhD

Martin Sapp, PhD was the Chair of Microbiology and Immunology at LSU Health Shreveport. Dr. Sapp had served as Chair of Microbiology and Immunology since 2018 when he replaced Dr. Dennis O’Callaghan who had served as Chair for the previous 34 years. Dr. Sapp was recruited to LSU Health Shreveport in 2005 as an Associate Professor for Microbiology and Immunology and was promoted to Professor in 2011. He was extremely honored and fulfilled a career goal when he was promoted to Chair of the department in 2018. Dr. Sapp was the holder of the Willis-Knighton Endowed Chair for Molecular Biology and previously held the Mingju Ding Memorial Professorship of Microbiology and Immunology.

Dr. Sapp was an accomplished researcher having served as the principal investigator (PI) of numerous grant awards. He was currently the PI on two major NIH R01 grants and a Co-PI on an NIH R21 grant. All three NIH grants totaled to $4.6 Million and addressed the molecular biology of HPV (human Papillomavirus) and the etiology of cervical cancer.

He was widely published and served for the past eleven years on the prestigious editorial boards of Virology and Virology Research.

Dr. Sapp served the institution in a variety of capacities to include:

  • Chairman Research Advisory Council from (2011-2017)
  • Member of the predoctoral fellowship preview panel (2011-2019)
  • Member Radiation Safety Committee (2011-2021)

Dr. Sapp received his Master’s in Biology and his Doctorate in Biology from the University Konstanz in Germany followed by further study in medical microbiology. He was a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. R. Knippers in Konstanz, Germany and of Dr. A. Worcel at the University of Rochester, New York. Dr. Sapp also completed a postdoctoral fellowship from the Deutsche Forschungs- gemeinschaft, Germany.

He began his academic career as an Assistant Professor at the Institut für Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Hygiene, Mainz during which time he became the Cofounder, CEO and CSO of Virofem Diagnostica GmbH.

Dr. Sapp held a deep love for both the United States and Germany maintaining homes in both countries. He was a colleague and mentor who could be counted on to assist anytime his intellectual knowledge or time was needed as evidenced by his efforts in setting up the COVID 19 testing lab at LSUHS in record time. He was kind and forthright and will be fondly remembered for his immense contributions to LSU Health Shreveport.