scholarly journals Rethinking Vaccine Development as an Integral Part of Preparedness in the European Health Union

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 821-830
Author(s):  
Marco RIZZI
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Research And Development ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Recent Past ◽  
Vaccine Research ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
European Health ◽  
Epidemic Diseases

This opinion piece puts forward a critique of the policy and regulatory frameworks governing vaccines, understood as tools to confront pandemic and epidemic diseases (PEDs). Vaccines being the universally recognised prime method of prevention, immunisation campaigns and vaccine research and development (R&D) could reasonably be expected to feature prominently in any policy and/or strategic document addressing emerging health threats. Yet, vaccination occupies a relatively subsidiary role, with a prevalent focus on risk management mechanisms. This piece outlines the main characteristics of preparedness frameworks and looks at vaccine development in the course of PED outbreaks in the recent past, concluding that the COVID-19 pandemic calls for a paradigm shift in vaccine R&D, which should become integral to public health preparedness.

scholarly journals Current State of Anthrax Vaccines and Key R&D Gaps Moving Forward

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Clark ◽  
Daniel N. Wolfe
Keyword(s):  
Vaccine Development ◽  
The United States ◽  
Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽  
Vaccine Research ◽  
Anthrax Vaccine ◽  
Current State ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
Exposure Prophylaxis ◽  
Anthrax Vaccines

A licensed anthrax vaccine has been available for pre-exposure prophylaxis in the United States since 1970, and it was approved for use as a post-exposure prophylaxis, in combination with antibiotic treatment, in 2015. A variety of other vaccines are available in other nations, approved under various regulatory frameworks. However, investments in anthrax vaccines continue due to the severity of the threat posed by this bacterium, as both a naturally occurring pathogen and the potential for use as a bioweapon. In this review, we will capture the current landscape of anthrax vaccine development, focusing on those lead candidates in clinical development. Although approved products are available, a robust pipeline of candidate vaccines are still in development to try to address some of the key research gaps in the anthrax vaccine field. We will then highlight some of the most pressing needs in terms of anthrax vaccine research.

scholarly journals Addressing People’s Vaccine Hesitancy Will Be Helpful for COVID-19 Vaccination in China

2021 ◽  
pp. 101053952110181
Author(s):  
Lu Chen ◽  
Xinfa Zhou ◽  
Xiao Han ◽  
Anqichen Shi ◽  
Zhe Cheng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Events ◽  
Research And Development ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Risk Prevention ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Vaccine Research ◽  
Great Progress ◽  
The Government ◽  
Compensation Program

The latest news about global vaccine research and development shows that we have made great progress in vaccine development. However, in China, a large population of people are hesitant to get vaccinated due to various reasons. In this article, we focus on how to address people’s hesitancy on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine. It is important that governments fully prepare for both pre-risk prevention and post-event relief to promote the vaccination program’s smooth implementation. In particular, the government should establish and improve a national vaccine injury compensation program in response to COVID-19’s adverse events following immunization. Only through multilateral efforts and comprehensive measures can the people’s confidence in vaccination improve and their worries about the future be relatively eased.

scholarly journals VALIDATE: Exploiting the synergy between complex intracellular pathogens to expedite vaccine research and development for tuberculosis, leishmaniasis, melioidosis and leprosy

F1000Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 485
Author(s):  
Helen A. Fletcher ◽  
Mitali Chatterjee ◽  
Andrea Cooper ◽  
Tracy Hussell ◽  
Paul M. Kaye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Research And Development ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Intracellular Pathogens ◽  
Vaccine Research ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Investment Barriers ◽  
End Stage

For several complex intracellular pathogens, we have an urgent need for effective vaccines and yet there are common barriers to vaccine development. These diseases, including tuberculosis, leishmaniasis, leprosy and melioidosis, cause a huge burden of disease and disproportionately affect low and middle income countries. They are therefore often neglected due to the marginalisation of affected populations and the poor predicted commercial return on investment. Barriers to vaccine development include an incomplete understanding of protective immunity and translation from the bench into clinical vaccine trials. The current linear approach to vaccine research and development for these pathogens, which involves basic research, vaccine design, and vaccine evaluation in preclinical challenge models and clinical trials, is inefficient for these complex intracellular pathogens. We have established a Global Challenges Research Fund Network for VAccine deveLopment for complex Intracellular neglecteD pAThogEns, “VALIDATE”, where we aim to adopt a more flexible, integrated cross-pathogen approach to accelerate vaccine research and clinical development for these four pathogens, by cross-pathogen analyses, cross-discipline collaborations, and repeated integration of data from human and animal studies. This network provides a unique opportunity to bring together individuals working on four exemplar complex intracellular neglected pathogens (M.tb, Leishmania spp., B. pseudomallei and M.leprae), which share a common lifestyle as pathogens of macrophages, induce similar end-stage pathologies and alter host immune and metabolic responses. The horizontal collaborations established throughout this network, together with the provision of a protected environment for early data sharing, will exploit these biological synergies.  By interrogating mechanisms that lead from infection to disease, we will be able to develop common vaccine development strategies for these and other complex intracellular pathogens.

The chronicle of COVID-19: possible strategies to curb the pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajesh Kumar ◽  
Seetha Harilal ◽  
Abdullah G. Al-Sehemi ◽  
Githa Elizabeth Mathew ◽  
Simone Carradori ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Research And Development ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Therapeutic Strategies ◽  
Antiviral Drugs ◽  
Limited Data ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The World ◽  
Novel Virus ◽  
Day By Day

: COVID-19, an epidemic that emerged in Wuhan, has become a pandemic affecting worldwide and is in a rapidly evolving condition. Day by day, the confirmed cases and deaths are increasing many folds. SARS-CoV-2 is a novel virus; therefore, limited data are available to curb the disease. Epidemiological approaches, isolation, quarantine, social distancing, lockdown, and curfew are being employed to halt the spread of the disease. Individual and joint efforts all over the world are producing a wealth of data and information which are expected to produce therapeutic strategies against COVID-19. Current research focuses on the utilization of antiviral drugs, repurposing strategies, vaccine development as well as basic to advanced research about the organism and the infection. The review focuses on the life cycle, targets, and possible therapeutic strategies, which can lead to further research and development of COVID-19 therapy.

scholarly journals Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Strategies and Nucleoside Analogues

Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 667
Author(s):  
Robert J. Geraghty ◽  
Matthew T. Aliota ◽  
Laurent F. Bonnac
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Broad Spectrum ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Fast Response ◽  
Mechanisms Of Action ◽  
Public Health Emergency ◽  
Nucleoside Analogues ◽  
The Family ◽  
Antiviral Nucleoside

The emergence or re-emergence of viruses with epidemic and/or pandemic potential, such as Ebola, Zika, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV), Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 1 and 2 (SARS and SARS-CoV-2) viruses, or new strains of influenza represents significant human health threats due to the absence of available treatments. Vaccines represent a key answer to control these viruses. However, in the case of a public health emergency, vaccine development, safety, and partial efficacy concerns may hinder their prompt deployment. Thus, developing broad-spectrum antiviral molecules for a fast response is essential to face an outbreak crisis as well as for bioweapon countermeasures. So far, broad-spectrum antivirals include two main categories: the family of drugs targeting the host-cell machinery essential for virus infection and replication, and the family of drugs directly targeting viruses. Among the molecules directly targeting viruses, nucleoside analogues form an essential class of broad-spectrum antiviral drugs. In this review, we will discuss the interest for broad-spectrum antiviral strategies and their limitations, with an emphasis on virus-targeted, broad-spectrum, antiviral nucleoside analogues and their mechanisms of action.

scholarly journals The Search for a Schistosomiasis Vaccine: Australia’s Contribution

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 872
Author(s):  
Donald P. McManus
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Effective Vaccine ◽  
Neglected Tropical Disease ◽  
Vaccine Research ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Invaluable Tool ◽  
Sub Saharan

Schistosomiasis, a neglected tropical disease caused by parasitic flatworms of the genus Schistosoma, results in considerable human morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, but also parts of the Middle East, South America, and Southeast Asia. The anti-schistosome drug praziquantel is efficacious and safe against the adult parasites of all Schistosoma species infecting humans; however, it does not prevent reinfection and the development of drug resistance is a constant concern. The need to develop an effective vaccine is of great importance if the health of many in the developing world is to be improved. Indeed, vaccination, in combination with other public health measures, can provide an invaluable tool to achieve lasting control, leading to schistosomiasis elimination. Australia has played a leading role in schistosomiasis vaccine research over many years and this review presents an overview of some of the significant contributions made by Australian scientists in this important area.

scholarly journals The Integration of People Convicted of a Sexual Offence Into the Community and Their (Risk) Management

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. F. McCartan ◽  
K. Richards
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Life Course ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
Sexual Offending ◽  
Community Integration ◽  
Sexual Offence ◽  
Political Issue ◽  
Childhood Experiences ◽  
The Individual

Abstract Purpose of Review We are reviewing recent research into the community integration of men convicted of a sexual offence and their (risk) management. This is a high-profile political issue that binds together research in psychology, criminology, politics, health, public health, and policy studies. The review will demonstrate that a multi-disciplinary, life course, EpiCrim-oriented approach is the most effective way of reducing re-offending and promoting desistance in this population. Recent Findings Research demonstrates that life course development, especially from psychology and criminology, has an impact on whether people sexually offend or not. Therefore, to understand sexual offending behaviour, we need to look at the aetiology of said behaviour from a nature and a nurture perspective. Therefore, we need to use an Epidemiological Criminology (a marriage of Public Health and criminology) approach that works at all four stages of the Socio-Ecological Model (SEM) (individual, interrelationship, community, and societal). The research encourages a person first approach, that we look at Adverse Childhood Experiences and past trauma in the lives of men who sexually offend and use this, in conjunction with strength-based approaches, to inclusively integrate them into society. Summary The prevention of sexual offending, both first time offending, and relapse prevention require a multi-level, multi-disciplinary approach. Successful desistance from sexual offending is as much about the community and society as it is about the individual.

scholarly journals Randomized, Blinded, Dose-Ranging Trial of an Ebola Virus Glycoprotein Nanoparticle Vaccine With Matrix-M Adjuvant in Healthy Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 222 (4) ◽  
pp. 572-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Fries ◽  
Iksung Cho ◽  
Verena Krähling ◽  
Sarah K Fehling ◽  
Thomas Strecker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Immune Response ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Phase 1 ◽  
Healthy Adults ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Dose Ranging ◽  
Further Development ◽  
Human Vaccine

Abstract Background Ebola virus (EBOV) epidemics pose a major public health risk. There currently is no licensed human vaccine against EBOV. The safety and immunogenicity of a recombinant EBOV glycoprotein (GP) nanoparticle vaccine formulated with or without Matrix-M adjuvant were evaluated to support vaccine development. Methods A phase 1, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation trial was conducted in 230 healthy adults to evaluate 4 EBOV GP antigen doses as single- or 2-dose regimens with or without adjuvant. Safety and immunogenicity were assessed through 1-year postdosing. Results All EBOV GP vaccine formulations were well tolerated. Receipt of 2 doses of EBOV GP with adjuvant showed a rapid increase in anti-EBOV GP immunoglobulin G titers with peak titers observed on Day 35 representing 498- to 754-fold increases from baseline; no evidence of an antigen dose response was observed. Serum EBOV-neutralizing and binding antibodies using wild-type Zaire EBOV (ZEBOV) or pseudovirion assays were 3- to 9-fold higher among recipients of 2-dose EBOV GP with adjuvant, compared with placebo on Day 35, which persisted through 1 year. Conclusions Ebola virus GP vaccine with Matrix-M adjuvant is well tolerated and elicits a robust and persistent immune response. These data suggest that further development of this candidate vaccine for prevention of EBOV disease is warranted.

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