The use of vaccines is the most effective and inexpensive method to generate protection against disease-causing pathogens. In the department "Vaccinology" scientists are looking for new vaccines, to serve either as a prophylaxis or as a therapy against disease. The researchers are focusing on three specific areas:
One area concerns itself with the basic research into new immune modulators; that is, substances that stimulate certain components of the immune system. In addition, we are developing new delivery systems for antigen and DNA vaccines.
In the second area, scientists are concerned with the reactions triggered when a host organism is exposed to an infection or a vaccination. The aim is to find and precisely explain the defense mechanisms caused by less virulent infections or which make the host resistant to the pathogen. Understanding these mechanisms is of great importance to the development of vaccines, because without this knowledge we cannot develop vaccines that provide both good protection and, at the same time, do not harm the patient receiving them.
The focus in our third area of study is the development and validation of vaccines. Substances that have proved their potential as possible vaccine candidates are tested on conventional and humanized mouse models. Humanized mice carry human cell lines that are necessary for validating the respective vaccines. These humanized mouse models help us to more accurately compare the efficacy of a potential vaccine with the effects it would have on the human organism. This method ensures that potential vaccines are safe and effective and can be moved from the initial phases of basic research to clinical testing.
You can find more information on the research group in these press releases and podcasts in German.
