Infection & Immunity: Monitoring of Immune Responses, Infections and Vaccine Research during Clinical Studies

This is an in-presence course. In the practical component, you will apply laboratory techniques to diagnose infections using molecular methods, such as Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction and to assess pathogen-specific antibody and T cell responses, both of which are vital for clinical vaccine trials and studies. These hands-on experiences will be instrumental in honing your technical skills and enhancing your understanding of immune responses.

The course will also teach about different vaccine types and vaccination approaches and emphasize on regulatory aspects related to vaccine research and in particular assay validation for clinical immunomonitoring.

1. Theoretical Foundations: Gain insight into the immune system's response to pathogens and vaccines, understanding key cell types like T cells and B cells. Explore immune responses from antigen recognition to the formation of adaptive immune memory and to effector mechanisms.

2. Immune Assays: Hands-on training in various experimental assays central to the detection of pathogens and pathogen-specific Immune responses, to prepare and interpret results accurately, ensuring proficiency in immune response assessment.
3. T Cell Immunomonitoring: Learn techniques for evaluating T cell proliferation, cytokine production, and cytotoxic activity, crucial for understanding cellular immunity.
4. B Cell and Antibody Assays: Understand the role of B cells and antibodies in immune defense, practicing antibody assays such as ELISA and neutralization assays for comprehensive immune monitoring.
5. Flow Cytometry: Master flow cytometry principles and data analysis for characterizing immune cell populations, essential for precise immune profiling and monitoring in clinical settings.
6. Use of Pathogen and Immunomonitoring: Explore how techniques can be applied in current reseach practices using real world example of the munich sewage system surveillance project.

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Understand different Vaccine Types and the phases of vaccine development, including recent advances in vaccine research.
• Ensuring Safe Laboratory Practices: Apply concepts for safely handling human specimens.
• Practical Application of Laboratory Techniques: Apply basic laboratory techniques to assess and diagnose infections using molecular methods. Perform analyses of pathogen-specific antibody and T cell responses commonly applied in vaccine trials and clinical studies.
• Critical Appraisal of Regulatory Requirements: Know about key principles of regulatory requirements in the laboratory (GCLP) for clinical immunomonitoring, molecular diagnostics and assay validation in Europe.

Public health professionals, epidemiologists, researchers, health policy planners, and anyone interested in infectious diseases immunology and vaccine research.

Registration is TBA

The Vaccine Research and Immunomonitoring course, held from January 20th to 24th, 2025, at LMU Laboratories at Leopoldstraße 05, was a resounding success, providing an intensive and hands-on learning experience for a select cohort. The small class size, dictated by biosafety and lab work requirements, allowed participants to fully engage in practical immunological techniques, making it a landmark session.

The course commenced with essential biosafety instructions and an introduction to molecular pathogen detection, with a focus on Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Participants engaged in practical bench work, including semi-quantitative PCR for multiplex HR-HPV detection and diagnostic PCR analysis.

The second day introduced immunomonitoring techniques, covering the fundamentals of immunology, vaccine research, human studies, and specimen processing. The highlight was the practical ELISPOT assay, focusing on pathogen-specific T cells. This was complemented by journal club discussions on COVID-19 vaccine efficacy.

Midweek, the focus shifted to multidimensional immunomonitoring, particularly the innate host response and T cell analysis. Practical ELISPOT experiments continued, alongside journal club discussions on influenza vaccines and mucosal immunity.

On Thursday, participants explored B cell and antibody responses using ELISA techniques, followed by expert lectures on virus-specific antibody monitoring and molecular characterization of SARS-CoV-2-specific B cell responses. The session concluded with in-depth journal club discussions on HIV vaccine research.

The final day centered on flow cytometry, environmental pathogen monitoring, and immunomonitoring data analysis. A multiple-choice test and online Good Clinical Laboratory Practice training rounded out the course, ensuring participants left with both theoretical and applied expertise in vaccine research and immunomonitoring.

The course coordinators, Dr. Christof Geldmacher and Dr. Kathrin Held, with their tireless team, ensured seamless lectures and practical sessions, along with engaging discussions at the journal club.