The GW Vaccine Research Unit (GW VRU) seminar series entitled, “State-of-the Art Topics in Vaccinology”, will bring together a cross-disciplinary group of faculty, trainees, and students from SMHS and also from the Milken Institute School of Public Health, School of Nursing, School of Engineering, Columbia College, and participants from local institutions including Howard and Georgetown Universities, the Pan-American Health Organization, and the DC Department of Health. Topic areas that will be explored during the seminar series will span the domain of translational vaccinology, from in silico reverse vaccinology to the production of recombinant bacterial proteins for vaccines. In addition, we seek to provide sound data and be a community resource on topics relevant to vaccines in order to encourage dialogue and a stronger understanding of an often-misunderstood subject.

Seminar topics will include: • Controlled human infection models (CHIMs) for proof-of-concept vaccine efficacy testing (e.g., hookworm, malaria, dengue, enteric bacterial infections) • Systems serology to assess potential correlates of vaccine-induced protection • Vaccines for neglected tropical diseases • Next-generation COVID-19 vaccines targeting mucosal and broad immunity • RSV vaccines: newly approved vaccines for older and pregnant individuals plus what’s on the horizon • Vaccines to prevent enteric infections