Tuesday, 3 September at 1:00pm
Microbiology Seminar Room 208
Dr Alexandra J Spencer, Margaret Baird Award visitor
Developing and optimising viral vectored vaccines for infectious diseases
Traditional vaccination with heat-killed or attenuated vaccines have proved highly effective against pathogens controlled by neutralising antibodies. But for pathogens where cell mediated immunity is important for protection against disease, an alternative approach is required.
In efforts to develop a vaccine that can induce high levels of antibodies and/or T cells to protect against malaria, over the years we have compared the immunogenicity and efficacy of different vaccine platforms, adjuvants, routes of administration and vaccination regimens. In the process of translating these approaches to the clinic, it has highlighted the different types of immune responses that can be induced through vaccination and led to the development of Adenovirus based vectors as cost-effective vaccine platform approach. In 2020 we were able to apply our knowledge and experience with viral vectored vaccines to rapidly develop a COVID vaccine.
