¹û¶³Ö±²¥ÊÓƵ

World Immunisation Week 2021

To mark from 24 to 30 April, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) Vaccine Centre is hosting a series of webinars. The theme this year is ‘Vaccines Bring Us Closer’. Each day of the week we focus on an important area of vaccine research, science and debate bringing together experts in the field. We end the week with the Vaccine Centre Annual Lecture on 30 April. 

In this first event, we focus on new developments for vaccines against diarrhoeal illnesses which continue to kill over half a million young children each year. Dr Ed Parker will discuss "Rotavirus vaccines: past, present, and future" and Professor Calman McLennan will explore "What’s in the pipeline for vaccines against diarrhoea caused by bacterial pathogens?"

This session will be chaired by Professor Beate Kampmann, the Director of LSHTM Vaccine Centre & MRC Unit The Gambia at LSHTM Theme Leader.

Speakers 

Dr Ed Parker, LSHTM 

Dr Ed Parker, is Research Fellow in Systems Biology, LSHTM. He completed a BA in Biological Sciences at Oxford University, an MSc in Laboratory Medicine at the University of Toronto, and a PhD in infectious disease epidemiology at Imperial College London. His work considers why oral vaccines (such as those targeting polio and rotavirus) have consistently proven to be less effective in low-income countries. To date, he has focused on the possible contribution of the microbiome to this phenomenon, applying a range of lab and bioinformatic tools to sequence gut bacteria and viruses. 

At LSHTM, Ed is working to gain a deeper understanding of the interconnected system of the microbiome that is shaped and is in turn shaped by host immunity, gene expression, protein production, and metabolism thereby shedding light on the fundamental mechanisms that shape vaccine immunity. 

, University of Oxford and University of Birmingham

Professor Calman McLennan's main research objective is to understand the immunological basis of protection against invasive bacterial disease with a view to prevention and treatment, focusing on communities in resource-limited settings and patients with impaired immunity. His programme at the Jenner Institute aims to combine an improved understanding of naturally-acquired immunity and vaccine-induced immunity to invasive bacteria, focusing on Salmonella, with a view to the development of effective and affordable vaccines against these pathogens for use in the developing world. This work involves partnership and collaboration with sites in low-income countries and exploitation of effective and affordable vaccine technologies, such as Generalized Modules for Membrane Antigens (GMMA). 

Other events taking place around this year's World Immunisation Week 

• 27 April, 13.00 - 14.00 - COVID vaccine passports or certification: a good or bad idea? 
• 28 April, 13.00 - 14.00 - Enhancing mother’s gifts: Up and coming vaccines for pregnant women to protect their newborns from infections 
• 29 April, 12.00 - 13.00 - Human challenge models to advance vaccines against respiratory pathogens 
• 30 April, 13.00 - 14.00 - Vaccine Centre Annual Lecture 2021: Dr Rino Rappuoli 

LSHTM Viral

Season 3 of the LSHTM Viral podcast is exploring vaccines and vaccinations in a COVID-19 world, from ingredients to manufacturing, and through to the realities of distribution to a global population. In each episode our experts also answer the most pressing questions from the public on the COVID-19 vaccines, so send your questions to comms@lshtm.ac.uk. LSHTM Viral is Spotify’s 13^th most popular science podcast in the UK. Subscribe now: , , , , , , , , , .

• Please note that the time listed is British Summer Time (BST)
• Please note that the recording link will be listed on this page when available