This course describes the underpinning science around vaccines and their development. It will look at the immunological underpinnings of how vaccines induce protection. It will also look at the epidemiological basis of how vaccines are rolled out. Finally it will explore how new vaccines are developed.
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How Vaccines Work
This course is part of Foundations in Virology and Vaccinology Specialization
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Instructor: John Tregoning
1,858 already enrolled
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(30 reviews)
Recommended experience
What you'll learn
Recognise how viruses cause infections
Recognise how vaccines prevent infections
Details to know
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4 assignments
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There are 4 modules in this course
Basic overview of the immune system. This will cover: what is the immune system, what is immune memory, why that is important for vaccines, the key cells of adaptive immunity and then how these all contribute to vaccine induced protection.
What's included
9 videos7 readings1 assignment
This module will cover vaccines at a population level introducing some epidemiological principles. We will explore how infections spread (and how we model that). We will introduce the role of herd immunity. We will discuss what pathogen eradication means and what types of disease are eradicable and which ones are not?
What's included
6 videos4 readings1 assignment2 discussion prompts
Novel vaccines are no use if they are stuck on the shelves of research labs, they need to be deployed to prevent infections. Here, we will explore the process of clinical trials which test vaccines for safety and efficacy (whether they work), we will look at ways to measure vaccine success. Then move onto how vaccines are made and how they are deployed.
What's included
6 videos5 readings1 assignment3 discussion prompts
As we have seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a need for new vaccines. But it isn’t just for novel emerging diseases. There are a whole host of endemic infections that would benefit from new vaccines. With changing population dynamics and climate change, different disease profiles would benefit from vaccines. Here, we will explore why we might need new vaccines. We will look what an ideal vaccine might look like, and the scientific challenges in developing one. We will then look at the real-world challenges that prevent uptake and deployment of such a vaccine, both logistic and societal.
What's included
6 videos5 readings1 assignment3 discussion prompts
Instructor
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Offered by
Recommended if you're interested in Basic Science
Imperial College London
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology(KAIST)
American Museum of Natural History
Imperial College London
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Learner reviews
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Reviewed on Aug 5, 2024
Excelente curso introductorio para dar un panorama completo y amplio de generalidades del desarrollo de vacunas.
Reviewed on Dec 18, 2024
A good synopsis for the early investigator in vaccinology. A "blast into the past" & review for others. But well worth the effort to both.
Reviewed on Jul 4, 2024
Excelente opción para adentrarte al entendiemiento de las vacunas, te lleva de la mano y puntualiza los conceptos básicos.
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