On 1 October 2011 the collaborative research programme – Advanced Immunization Technologies (ADITEC) - started in order to accelerate the development of novel and powerful immunization technologies for the next generation of human vaccines. ADITEC is co-funded with €30M by the European Commission to establish a robust platform for innovation in this key strategic area with a high socio-economic impact. Scientists from 42 research partners in 13 countries will collaborate in this new programme. TBVI is one of the partners of this project where tuberculosis is one of the key issues to be investigated.
Read more about the project

European and African research organisations are gearing up to improve and strengthen collaboration in tuberculosis (TB) vaccine research. Eleven institutions from both continents will create a network where knowledge on clinical trials will be exchanged, joint activities can be explored and coordinated, and where clinical trials capacity will be improved. The network will start with a kick-off meeting on 15 November in Berlin and has received a budget of 765,000 euros.

The network is funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and will be coordinated by the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Germany and TuBerculosis Vaccine Initiative (TBVI). The programme ‘Collaboration and integration of tuberculosis vaccine trials in Europe and Africa’ (TBTEA) will bring together researchers to strengthen collaboration between the north and the south and to exchange knowledge and know-how.
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Stop TB partnership and WHO launched the 'International roadmap for tuberculosis research' last weekend at the 42nd Union meeting in Lille. TBVI's director Jelle Thole and several research partners contributed to this guiding document for the coming years.

The overall objective of global TB research roadmap was to define the essential research questions that provide a common framework for scientific disciplines to work concurrently and collaboratively for better TB control towards the elimination of TB.
Read more about the specific needs in vaccine and other research

TBVI, together with the University of Zaragoza and the Fundacion Ramon Areces organized an internationl symposium 'New TB vaccines for the future' in Madrid, Spain, on October 17 and 18, 2011. According to the audience this was a very successful symposium, both because of the very high quality of the presentations, and the open discussion with the audience.

We were very happy that Jorge Sampaio, former President of Portugal and UN special envoy to stop TB, opened the symposium with a video statement where he emphasized that we will need better vaccines to finally eliminate tuberculosis. Furthermore he added: "Vaccine research is costly. Can we ask for this type of investments during these economically difficult times? The anwer should be YES."

During the symposium a press conference was held to explain the promising results of TBVI's research partners during the past years. Futhermore our financial guarantee plan was explained which can facilitate the costly development of new vaccines.
Here you can find the abstract book, speech of Sampaio and media outreach

TBVI together with Aeras was present at the 42nd Union world conference on Lung Health in Lille with a joint booth. In the booth we asked visitors to join our call for new vaccines, which resulted in broad support.

Furthermore TBVI, together with Aeras and Institut Pasteur in Lille organized a symposium 'Partnerships to Accelerate TB Vaccine Development'.
Link to the calls from all over the world and the abstracts of the symposium

During the meeting of TBVI's council of Trustees on 19 October, two new members of the Council of Trustees were introduced: Bernard Petit, former Deputy Director General at the EC Directorate General for Development, and Charles Goerens, currently Member of the European Parliament from Luxembourg. The Council of Trustees consists of donors and influential personalities in the field of health and politics. They provide TBVI with strategic advice. Bernard Petit was elected as the new chair of the Council of Trustees.
See the complete overview of TBVI's Council of Trustees

TBVI will organise the following meetings:
22 March 2012: World TB day sympsoium in Brussels. Programme will follow soon on our website
24-27 March 2013: Third global forum on TB vaccines, Cape Town (co-organised with Aeras and SATVI)
For more agenda items, please take a look at our website

Royal attention for the projects of Prof Francoise Mascart at Université Libre de Bruxelles, one of TBVI's research partners. Her departement received a grant last year from the Fondation Roi Baudouin. The prize was presented by Princess Astrid of Belgium who expressed her interest in the problem of tuberculosis and was keen to learn more about the research. Princess Astrid will visit the lab in November.

TBVI is contributing to an exhibition dedicated to the BCG vaccine. The exhibition, organised by the Association Camille Guerin and his great grandson Sylvain Guerin, commemorates the 90th anniversary of the vaccine and the 50th anniversary of the death of one of its creators, Camille Guerin. The exhibition was on display in Lille, France, during the annual conference of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease and will be in Paris from 12-18 December.
Read more about the exhibition