[VMD Roster]

The Vaccines Against Microbial Diseases study section reviews applications on immune responses to pathogens and the development of safe and effective vaccines against pathogens other than HIV. The study section reviews basic and applied applications relating to the refinement and development of vaccines. Areas of interest include construction and improvement of vaccines and their delivery; development of methods to assess immune responses to vaccines; and assessment of immunogenicity, efficacy and safety in animal models and humans. The applications reviewed by this study section are distinguished from basic immunology- and pathogenesis-oriented applications designed to increase understanding of immune responses or pathogens as a necessary process that precedes vaccine development. The study section balances the perspectives of those expert in the basic immune system (innate and adaptive) and of those expert in the complex biology of pathogens and their interactions with hosts.

Specific areas covered by VMD:

• Characterization of the immune responses that may be used to develop vaccines against infectious diseases other than AIDS
• Identification of pathogen components and polymorphisms that elicit protective or pathogenic immune responses relevant to vaccine design
• Enhancement of antigenicity by modification of pathogens' components
• Development of adjuvants, conjugants, and immunomodulators
• Improvement of methods for vaccine production, including vaccine constructs, plasmids and virus-like particles, peptide and protein vaccines, conjugation methods, and cell lines for vaccine production
• Development of new approaches to optimize delivery of vaccines, including those using vectors
• Development of animal models for assessing vaccine-based approaches to prevent or treat infectious diseases, including evaluation of immunogenicity, protection, and safety
• Methods for pre-clinical and clinical assessment of protective immune responses
• Research to improve immunogenicity or safety of existing vaccines

Approaches include patient studies, in vitro studies of human and animal materials, and animal models. Although full clinical trials would typically be assigned to ICs for review, applications addressing initial tests of vaccine concepts may be assigned to VMD.

VMD has the following shared interests within the IMM IRG:

• With Innate Immunity and Inflammation [III]: Disease-specific immune function is a shared interest. If the primary focus of an application is basic inflammation or innate immune function, assignment may be to III. If the primary focus of a disease-specific immune function application is a disease-specific vaccine, assignment may be to VMD.
  
  
• With Immunity and Host Defense [IHD]: Applications dealing with basic mucosal immunity and inflammation may be referred to IHD. Applications dealing with modulation of mucosal immunity from the point of view of developing a vaccine may be referred to VMD.
  
  
• With Cellular & Molecular Immunology A & B [CMIA and CMIB]: Studies of specific gene polymorphisms altering the function of the immune system may be reviewed by VMD. Studies of basic lymphocyte development and differentiation may be assigned to CMIA or CMIB.
  
  
• With Hypersensitivity, Autoimmune, and Immune-mediated Diseases [HAI]: Studies of specific gene polymorphisms altering the function of the immune system may be reviewed by VMD. Studies of specific immune-mediated diseases may be assigned to HAI.
  
  
• With Transplantation, Tolerance, and Tumor Immunology [TTT]: TTT shares an interest with VMD in the development of immunity. TTT focuses on fundamental issues of tolerance such as repertoire selection and tolerance induction, while VMD focuses on vaccines against specific diseases.

VMD has the following shared interests outside the IMM IRG:

• With the Health of the Population [HOP] IRG: Epidemiological studies of vaccine efficacy may be assigned to HOP; small-scale clinical trials may be assigned to VMD.
  
• With the Infectious Diseases and Microbiology [IDM] IRG: If the focus of an application is host defense and immune responses to infectious organisms, assignment may be to VMD.  If the focus is infectious organisms, assignment may be to IDM.
  
• With the AIDS and Related Research [AARR] IRG: Applications directed toward development of AIDS vaccines may be referred to AARR; those directed toward development of vaccines against other infectious diseases may be referred to VMD.
  
• With the Oncological Sciences [ONC] IRG: Immune surveillance and tumor immunity are shared interests. Typically, studies of tumor immunity and immune surveillance, including the development and testing of immunotherapeutic approaches to cancer treatment, may be assigned to ONC. An application that addresses tumor immunology in the context of general vaccinology may be assigned to VMD.
  
  
• With the Digestive Sciences [DIG] IRG: Shared interests are immunologic aspects of bowel disease including inflammatory bowel disease, gluten specific autoimmune gastritis, and other types of immune mediated gastrointestinal diseases. Applications where the focus is gastrointestinal physiology or pathology, including injury and inflammation, may be assigned to DIG. Those where the focus is vaccine research may be assigned to VMD.