Chih-Jen (CJ) Wei, Sanofi Pasteur to Present at Vaccines Conference on July 9-11, 2014, in Boston, MA

Boston, MA, June 19, 2014 --(PR.com)-- Chih-Jen (CJ) Wei, Director at Sanofi Pasteur will give a presentation on, “A Self-Assembling Influenza Nanoparticle Vaccine Elicits Broad and Potent Neutralizing Antibodies” at the 12th Vaccines Research & Development: All Things Considered Conference on July 9-11, 2014, in Boston, MA, by GTCbio.

Influenza viruses pose a significant threat to the public and are a burden on global health systems. Each year, influenza vaccines must be rapidly-produced to match circulating viruses, a process constrained by dated technology and vulnerable to unexpected strains emerging from humans and animal reservoirs. Dr. Wei uses knowledge of protein structure to design self-assembling nanoparticles that elicit broader and more potent immunity than traditional influenza vaccines. The viral hemagglutinin was genetically fused to ferritin, a protein that naturally forms nanoparticles composed of 24 identical polypeptides. Hemagglutinin was inserted at the interface of adjacent subunits so that it spontaneously assembles and generates eight trimeric viral spikes on its surface. Immunization with this influenza nanoparticle vaccine elicited hemagglutination inhibition antibody titres more than tenfold higher than those from the licensed inactivated vaccine. Furthermore, it elicited neutralizing antibodies to two highly conserved vulnerable hemagglutinin structures that are targets of universal vaccines, the stem and the receptor binding site on the head. Finally, antibodies elicited by a 1999 hemagglutinin–nanoparticle vaccine neutralized H1N1 viruses from 1934 to 2007 and protected ferrets from an unmatched 2007 H1N1 virus challenge. This structure-based, self-assembling synthetic nanoparticle vaccine improves the potency and breadth of influenza virus immunity, and it provides a foundation for building broader vaccine protection against emerging influenza viruses and other pathogens.

GTCbio’s annual Vaccines Conference continues a tradition of presenting valuable updates and exposure to all aspects of vaccine development in a comfortable, interactive and friendly setting with leaders in vaccinology from industry, academia, and the government. They bring together the people who make the discoveries, make the decisions, fund the work and license the vaccines and foster their interaction with the attendees to share their perspectives of the vaccine industry.

This conference is also part of the Infectious Diseases World Summit 2014, which consists of this conference and two other conferences:

1) 3rd Annual Influenza Research and Development Conference
2) 11th Anti-infectives Partnering and Deal-Making Conference

For more information, please visit http://www.gtcbio.com/