Aim
Vaccinology: Science, Innovation, and Global Impact explains how vaccines are designed, developed, tested, manufactured, and delivered at scale. Learn immune principles, vaccine platforms, clinical development basics, safety monitoring, and public health impact.
Program Objectives
- Immunology Basics: immune response and protection concepts.
- Vaccine Platforms: live, inactivated, subunit, viral vector, mRNA (overview).
- Antigen Design: targets, epitopes, and adjuvants (overview).
- Development Pipeline: preclinical to clinical trial phases.
- Safety: quality, adverse events, pharmacovigilance basics.
- Manufacturing: scale-up, QC/QA, cold chain concepts.
- Policy & Equity: access, hesitancy, global programs (overview).
- Capstone: build a vaccine development brief.
Program Structure
Module 1: Vaccines and Public Health
- How vaccines reduce disease burden.
- Herd immunity concepts and limitations.
- Vaccine schedules and program planning (overview).
- Measuring impact: coverage, effectiveness, outbreaks.
Module 2: Immune Response and Vaccine Protection
- Innate vs adaptive immunity (overview).
- Antibodies, T cells, and memory responses.
- Correlates of protection concepts.
- Booster logic and waning immunity basics.
Module 3: Vaccine Platforms and Design
- Live attenuated and inactivated vaccines (overview).
- Protein subunit and conjugate vaccines.
- Viral vectors and nucleic acid vaccines (mRNA/DNA) (overview).
- Adjuvants and formulation basics.
Module 4: Antigen Discovery and Preclinical Development
- Choosing antigens and epitopes (overview).
- Basic lab assays: neutralization and immune readouts (intro).
- Animal models and what they can/cannot predict.
- Stability and storage constraints early in development.
Module 5: Clinical Trials and Regulatory Pathways (Overview)
- Phase I/II/III goals and endpoints.
- Safety monitoring and DSMB concepts.
- Ethics: informed consent and risk–benefit.
- Regulatory submissions and documentation (overview).
Module 6: Manufacturing and Quality
- Upstream/downstream manufacturing overview.
- Quality by design (QbD) concepts (intro).
- QC tests: identity, potency, sterility (overview).
- Cold chain and distribution planning.
Module 7: Vaccine Safety and Post-Marketing Surveillance
- Adverse events: detection and reporting basics.
- Pharmacovigilance and signal detection concepts.
- Risk communication and transparency.
- Handling misinformation and hesitancy (overview).
Module 8: Innovation and Global Access
- Next-gen platforms: self-amplifying RNA, universal vaccines (overview).
- Variant updates and rapid redesign concepts.
- Equity, procurement, and global distribution (overview).
- Future trends: thermostable vaccines and needle-free delivery (overview).
Final Project
- Select a disease target and define a vaccine concept.
- Deliverables: platform choice + antigen idea + trial outline + manufacturing/QC notes + access plan.
- Submit: short vaccine development brief.
Participant Eligibility
- Biotechnology, Microbiology, Pharmacy, Public Health students/professionals
- Clinical research and healthcare learners
- Basic immunology helpful
Program Outcomes
- Explain vaccine platforms and immune protection concepts.
- Understand vaccine development and clinical phases.
- Describe manufacturing, QC, and safety monitoring basics.
- Create a vaccine concept brief suitable for a portfolio.
Program Deliverables
- e-LMS Access: lessons, case studies, reading lists.
- Toolkit: vaccine brief template, trial-phase checklist, safety reporting guide.
- Assessment: certification after submission.
- e-Certification and e-Marksheet: digital credentials.
Future Career Prospects
- Vaccine R&D Trainee
- Clinical Research Associate (Trainee)
- Regulatory Affairs Associate (Entry-level)
- Public Health Program Associate
Job Opportunities
- Pharma/Biotech: vaccine development, QA/QC, and clinical teams.
- CROs: vaccine clinical trial operations and documentation roles.
- Public Health Agencies/NGOs: immunization programs and surveillance.
- Manufacturing: vaccine production and quality systems teams.
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