Engineering timing and location for next-generation vaccines

Following infection, even “acute” viral and bacterial infections are often accompanied by prolonged antigen and/or inflammatory cue exposure, which can extend weeks after infectious pathogen is cleared. This is in contrast the relatively short duration of antigen/inflammation that accompanies many subunit vaccines.  Further, the structural integrity of vaccine antigens is critical for the priming of protective humoral immunity, but following protein immunization, antigens are rapidly degraded in the subcapsular sinus, paracortex, and interfollicular regions of lymph nodes. To overcome these challenges, we have developed immunization strategies and vaccine delivery technologies that prolong the delivery of antigen/adjuvant cues to lymphoid tissues, alter antigen uptake/capture in lymph nodes, and target antigens to B cell follicles. These approaches modulate diverse aspects of the immune response, expanding the repertoire of responding B cells, augmenting germinal center reactions, and promoting enhanced memory B cell and plasma cell development. Applications of these approaches to enhance vaccine responses to HIV and coronaviruses will be described. 

Darrell Irvine, Ph.D., is a Professor at the Scripps Research Institute, where he recently relocated after 20 years as a faculty member at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is also an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. He also serves on the steering committee of the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard. His research is focused on the application of engineering tools to problems in cellular immunology and the development of new materials for vaccine and drug delivery. Major efforts of the laboratory are directed toward vaccine development for HIV and cancer immunotherapy. Dr. Irvine’s work has been recognized by numerous awards, including election as a Member of the National Academy of Medicine, Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society, Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and appointment as an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. He is the author of over 200 publications, reviews, and book chapters and an inventor on numerous patents.

Moderation: Dr. Björn Corleis