Novel approaches to pediatric viral vaccine development in the mRNA era - What' s next in the pipeline?

Saturday, April 29, 2023

8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET

Location: Convention Center: Ballroom A

CE: Live CME: 1.50

Selected By: PIDS Independent

Chair(s)

Sallie Permar, MD, PhD (she/her/hers)

Department Chair of Pediatrics
Weill Cornell Medicine
New York City, New York, United States
Mark Schleiss, MD

Professor of Pediatrics
Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology
University of Minnesota Medical School
Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Disclosure(s):

Sallie R. Permar, MD, PhD, Permar: Dynavax: Consultant (Ongoing); Hoopika: Consultant (Ongoing); Merck: Consultant (Ongoing), Research Support including clinical trials & the principal or named investigator (Ongoing); Moderna: Consultant (Ongoing), Research Support including clinical trials & the principal or named investigator (Ongoing); Pfizer: Consultant (Ongoing)

Mark R. Schleiss, MD: Moderna Vaccines (Ongoing) (Products/Services: Research Support including clinical trials & the principal or named investigator)

Session

Description: As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, the landscape of pediatric vaccinology has been forever-changed by the advent of mRNA vaccines. Employment of this vaccine technology profoundly impacted SARS-CoV-2 disease, but what new vaccine technologies and approaches are "on the horizon"? In this state-of-the-art symposium, advances in pediatric vaccinology will be presented by NIH-funded bench/translational vaccine researchers. The focus of the symposium will be to demonstrate how the elucidation of enhanced knowledge of maternal and neonatal immunity has facilitated novel vaccine strategies that both include, and extend beyond, the mRNA landscape. Dr. Permar will discuss passive and active vaccine strategies that leverage emerging concepts on the immunology of the maternal-fetal interface and early life immunity, using HIV vaccines as a paradigm. Dr. Schleiss will present his laboratory's work defining protective maternal immune correlates against congenital CMV infection, emphasizing how this knowledge informs active CMV vaccine trials. Dr. Langel will present her data regarding mucosal maternal vaccination for generation of neutralizing sIgA antibodies in breast milk as a potential vaccine against perinatally-acquired viruses. This approach, by boosting "lactogenic immunity" for breast-fed infants, represents a novel protective strategy during this window of great vulnerability. Dr. Hensley will present his laboratory's progress toward solving the long-standing problem of "original antigenic sin" in influenza infection, toward the goal of a multivalent, "universal" mRNA-based vaccine. The symposium's overarching goal is to present new knowledge in vaccine immunology that will lead to novel viral vaccines for high-priority areas of unmet need for neonatal and childhood infections.

Learning Objectives:

...describe how advances in understanding the maternal-fetal immune interface and early life immunity informs novel vaccine design, including early-life immunization approaches for HIV and CMV.
...explain the concept of "lactogenic immunity", and explain how mucosal immunization strategies could protect the nursing neonate against pathogens such as RSV, influenza, and norovirus.
...recall the concept of "original antigenic sin", recognize how this complicates influenza vaccination, and describe a new, mRNA-based "universal" flu vaccine that obviates this concern.

Presentations:

8:00 AM – 8:20 AM ET

Leveraging early life immunity for long-term vaccine-mediated protection
Speaker: Sallie R. Permar, MD, PhD (she/her/hers) – Weill Cornell Medicine
8:20 AM – 8:40 AM ET

In the on-deck circle: Is a vaccine against congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) the next vaccine in the pipeline to be licensed?
Speaker: Mark R. Schleiss, MD – University of Minnesota Medical School
8:40 AM – 9:00 AM ET

Mucosal vaccine strategies targeted to the postpartum period: Boosting lactogenic immunity for suckling infants
Speaker: Stephanie Langel, PhD – Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
9:00 AM – 9:20 AM ET

Can an mRNA vaccine work in newborns?: Evaluation of an influenza vaccine in the NHP model
Speaker: Martha A. Alexander-Miller, PhD – Wake Forest University School of Medicine