Your Daily Vaccine Update
Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development
I am very happy to be associated with a remarkable institution making significant strides in global vaccine equity and development: the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development (CVD). This center is at the forefront of creating accessible and affordable vaccines for some of the world's most pressing infectious diseases, especially those often overlooked by larger pharmaceutical companies.
I have posted about the CVD before, and I will expand on those posts here.
The CVD is led by Peter Hotez and Maria Elena Bottazzi. In addition to co-leading the CVD, Peter is a forceful and energetic global advocate for sound scientific analysis of vaccines for global health needs. Every day he is working to counter anti-science and anti-vaccine movements. He has written several books that are available on Amazon. Maria-Elena is the scientific driving force behind the center and provides day-to-day leadership of its operations. She has been widely recognized for her accomplishments.
The Center's work is driven by a deep commitment to addressing neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and emerging infectious diseases that disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries.
Vaccines in Development:
The CVD has a pipeline of vaccine candidates, focusing on both established and emerging threats:
• COVID-19 Vaccine (CORBEVAX™ / IndoVac): Perhaps their most prominent achievement, the Center developed the technology for a recombinant protein-based COVID-19 vaccine. This vaccine, known as CORBEVAX™ in India (produced by Biological E. Limited) and IndoVac in Indonesia (produced by Bio Farma), has been instrumental in global vaccination efforts, with nearly 100 million doses administered. Its design emphasizes affordability and accessibility, utilizing a traditional, well-understood protein-based platform. This vaccine has successfully completed Phase 3 trials and has received Emergency Use Authorization in multiple countries.
• Human Hookworm Vaccine: The Center is developing the first vaccine for human hookworm infection, a debilitating neglected tropical disease. This vaccine candidate is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials.
• Intestinal Schistosomiasis Vaccine: Another crucial vaccine targeting a neglected tropical disease, the vaccine for intestinal schistosomiasis is also in Phase 2 clinical trials.
• Chagas Disease Vaccine: The Center is advancing a vaccine for Chagas disease, currently in Phase 1 clinical trials.
• Early-Stage Pipeline for NTDs: They also have a portfolio of early-stage vaccines in preclinical development against other major soil-transmitted helminths, onchocerciasis, and leishmaniasis.
• Emerging Coronavirus Vaccines (SARS and MERS): Building on decades of research, the Center has also developed vaccine prototypes for other emerging coronavirus infections, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
Methodologies Utilized:
The CVD employs a range of methodologies, often prioritizing platforms that allow for scalable, low-cost production suitable for global distribution:
• Recombinant Protein Technology: This is a core methodology, as exemplified by their COVID-19 vaccine. It involves producing specific viral or bacterial proteins in a lab (often using yeast or bacterial systems) and then using these purified proteins as the vaccine antigen. This approach employs established manufacturing processes, contributing to affordability and scalability.
• Antigen Discovery: Their "Antigen Discovery Unit" focuses on identifying key proteins or parts of pathogens (antigens) that can effectively elicit a protective immune response. For their COVID-19 vaccine, they focused on the Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.
• Process Development & Formulation: They have dedicated units for optimizing the production process of vaccine antigens and developing stable formulations that can withstand challenging storage conditions, especially critical for distribution in tropical, resource-limited settings.
• Pre-clinical and Clinical Testing: The Center conducts rigorous preclinical studies in animal models and leads or participates in human clinical trials (Phase 1, 2, and 3) to assess vaccine safety and immunogenicity, and ultimately efficacy.
• "Vaccine Diplomacy" and Technology Transfer: A unique aspect of their methodology is an emphasis on "vaccine diplomacy" and openly sharing their vaccine technology (without intellectual property protections/patents) with manufacturers in developing countries. This collaborative model aims to build local vaccine manufacturing capacity and accelerate global access.
To me, the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development exemplifies how scientific innovation, combined with a humanitarian mission, can lead to real-world solutions for global health challenges.
In these days of uncertainty and disruption of scientific research and of vaccination programs, the CVD needs help more than ever.
You can support the valuable work of the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development at: https://give.texaschildrens.org/site/Donation2?3565.donation=form1&idb=544166734&DONATION_LEVEL_ID_SELECTED=1&df_id=3565&mfc_pref=T&3565.donation=root
Richard Mahoney
Adjunct Professor
Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development
Baylor College of Medicine
I used Google Gemini to draft this post. I edited the draft and added material.
