The 3rd UK BBSRC Veterinary Vaccinology Network conference was held at Riddel Hall, Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland, on 16th and 17th January, 2017. Local organisers Professor John P. Dalton, Dr Krystyna Cwiklinski and Dr Mark Robinson were delighted to welcome over 140 delegates to Belfast to listen to impressive line-up of 16 internationally-recognised speakers. This year the scientific programme was split into 4 themes covering diverse, and topical, themes in veterinary vaccinology.
Theme 1: Microbiome and Immunology, was chaired by Dr Bryan Charleston. The collection of microbiota that inhabit our guts, respiratory system and skin deliver important signals to our immune system. Professor Irene Salinas from the University of New Mexico described her recent findings on mucosal immune responses in fish and their importance in combating commensal microorganisms. The link between microbiota and obesity as well as the importance of the intestinal gut microbiome signature as a contributing factor to persistent weight gain, was discussed by Christoph Thaiss of the Institute of Science, Israel. Professor Simon Carding, Institute of Food Research, Norwich, then outlined how microbial extracellular vesicles can be harnessed for the oral delivery of vaccines. The session was rounded off by Professor Miren Iturriza Gomara from the University of Liverpool who described clinical and epidemiological aspects of rotavirus and the development of new vaccines for infants.
Theme 2, Parasite Immunology and Vaccines, was chaired by Dr Mark Robinson. The plenary presentation by Professor Richard Grencis, of the University of Manchester, provided a fascinating overview of the immune response to gastrointestinal-dwelling nematodes, particularly the role of IL13 in protection to these parasites. This was followed by talks from Professor Marshall Lightowlers from the University of Melbourne, on an extensively trialled vaccine against Taeniid cestode parasites in farm animals, and by Professor Theo Schetters, representing the CATVAC tick vaccine consortium, who overviewed the translational aspects of current (and some neglected) tick and other animal vaccines. The final speaker in this session, Dr Henry McSorley from the University of Edinburgh, spoke on the clever immunomodulatory mechanisms employed by nematode parasites to maintain their survival in their hosts.
Theme 3, Tuberculosis, was chaired by Professor Ivan Morrison, which dealt with the on-going battle against bacterial infection transmitted by the inhalation of Mycobacterium-contaminated droplets. The session began with a plenary presentation by Dr Simone Joosten from Leiden University Medical Centre who reviewed B cell responses to TB, particularly those expressed in humans. An overview of current and emerging in vitro models for investigating TB followed presented by Dr Diane Lee of the University of Surrey. Professor Stephen Gordon from University College Dublin discussed the exploitation of comparative genomics analysis to understand the virulence and pathogenicity of human and bovine TB to accelerate vaccine development against both species. This session was concluded by a presentation by Professor Elizabeth Glass of the University of Edinburgh who demonstrated the potential impact of host genetics on immune responsiveness traits in TB infected animals and in responses to vaccination.
Theme 4, Emerging Technologies, was chaired by Dr Timothy Connelley, featured a number of talks that specifically addressed new methodologies and approaches that could be employed in veterinary vaccines. The plenary presentation by Professor Andrew Sewell from the University of Cardiff described new tools for understanding regulation of T cell immune responses and how these recognise specific and non-specific antigens. This was followed by presentations from Professor Michael Skinner of Imperial College London on new advances in poultry vaccinology involving innate immunity and approaches such as in ovo vaccination. Dr Fred Fellouse discussed the generation and application of novel recombinant antibody technology developed by the Toronto Recombinant Antibody Centre. The final presentation of the meeting was given by Dr Ronan MacLoughlin from Aerogen, Ireland, who described the trials and tribulations of drug delivery to the lungs and presented new developments in aerosol delivery for drugs and vaccines.
As part of this year’s event, we held a breakout session specifically for early career researchers sponsored by the Queen’s University Athena Swan committee. This session, chaired by Dr Krystyna Cwiklinski, consisted of seven presentations from PhD students and postdoctoral researchers on a variety of stimulating topics. Dr Cwiklinski said “the future of veterinary vaccinology looks very strong given the quality of presentations by our early career researchers”.
On Monday evening we held a social networking event in the Parlour Bar including traditional Irish music and our “pint of science” comedy gig where some of our early career researchers, encouraged by local stand-up comedians, treated us to comical anecdotes about their research projects. A highlight of the evening was the parasite-inspired rendition of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air Rap by PhD student Ana Gonzales Hernandez! It was a terrific interactive event, and a great time was had by all.
The School of Biological Sciences at Queens University Belfast holds an Athena Swan Gold Award. In line with Athena Swan goals, we were pleased to have so many leading female researchers as part of our scientific programme. Further, over 50% of the attendees were female.
Finally, the Network and local organisers would like to thank Boehringer-Ingelheim, PerkinElmer Las UK Ltd, Elanco, Bio-RAD and Athena Swan for their generous sponsorship of the conference and the Riddel Hall staff for their hospitality.
We look forward to seeing you all at next year’s meeting!