3rd International Conference on Influenza and Zoonotic Diseases August 21-22 2017 Birmingham,UK

Biography:

Yulia Desheva has her expertise in the preparation of vaccine strains for live influenza vaccines, the development of immunization schemes for high-risk individuals, and  evaluating the role of neuraminidase antibodies in influenza infection and vaccination.

Abstract:

Statement of the Problem: Bacterial co-infections are common in influenza infected patients, including H1N1 pandemic influenza. Development of peptide vaccines based on bacterial surface proteins is a new approach to the prevention of bacterial infections. For protection against respiratory pathogens it's desirable to use mucosal vaccines, which ensures the formation of systemic immunity including secretory IgA production. This allows to reach the effective resistance against viral and bacterial pathogens. When administered intranasally, live influenza vaccine (LAIV) proved the safety and efficacy against drift variants of influenza viruses.

Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: The main objective of our research was to study the factors that contribute to the protective effect of associated immunization LAIV and Group B streptococcus (GBS) recombinant peptides. In mouse model we evaluated antibody responses against all vaccine components and followed the protection against homologous or heterologous influenza virus challenge complicated with bacterial infections.

Findings: We demonstrated that merged viral and bacterial intranasal vaccination using LAIV and recombinant GBS peptides: 1) induced balanced adaptive immune response against viral and bacterial antigens; 2) provided advantageous protection against influenza infections followed by GBS or S. pneumoniae infection compared to only LAIV-only or GBS-only vaccination; 3) the enhanced lung protection after double challenge was associated with elevated expression of IFN-gamma which may indicate T-cell immunity induction. The LAIV alone partially protected mice against S. pneumoniae secondary infection.

The Conclusion & Significance: Associated intranasal immunization using LAIV and the recombinant GBS peptides increased the protective effect against influenza and bacterial complications. Also, we conduct the study of innate immune responses against viral and bacterial antigens when administered simultaneously in monocytes-macrophages. In our study we used a short-term local application of the bacterial recombinant proteins, which further should be compared with the chimeric constructs when bacterial epitopes will be incorporated into the viral vectors.

Biography:

Ronen Tchelet joined Dyadic in May 2014 and has been Dyadic’s Vice President of Research and Business Development since January 2016. Dr. Tchelet received his Ph.D. in Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology from Tel Aviv University in 1993 and did his postdoctoral as an EERO fellow at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (EAWAG) in Switzerland. In the late 2000’s, he joined the API Division of TEVA Pharmaceutical Industries LTD., where he served as a Chief Technology Officer of Biotechnology and was the QA manager of COPAXONE® the flag ship TEVA¹s innovative drug. From 2007 through 2013, prior to joining Dyadic, Dr. Tchelet became the founder and the Managing Director of Codexis Laboratories Hungary kft. (CLH) At CLH, he established a state-of-the-art laboratory for strain engineering and all aspects of fermentation work including process optimization and scaling up. It was during this time that Dr. Tchelet engaged with the C1 technology that was successfully developed for the Biofuel and the Bio-Industrial enzymes fields

Abstract:

For over 30 years Dyadic has proven itself, commercially and scientifically, as a high quality and highly productive producer of enzymes and proteins using a proprietary and patented expression system based on the Myceliopthora thermophila fungus, nicknamed C1.

The C1 platform technology is a hyper-productive fungal expression system used to develop & manufacture large quantities of desired proteins at industrial scale at significantly lower CapEx and OpEx costs.

Since the successful sale of Dyadic’s industrial biotech business to DuPont for US$75 million on December 31, 2015, we have been focused on applying the C1 technology platform to help enhance the development and manufacturing of biologic vaccines and drugs.

We achieved encouraging results, knowledge and experience in vaccine development from our prior research collaboration with Sanofi Pasteur that we believe can be leveraged and built upon with other partners.  During the collaboration, meaningful improvements were made to the C1 expression system to produce antigens of interest at high level with potentially better immune response.

Dyadic is one of a consortium of companies participating in the EU sponsored ZAPI research program.  ZAPI is a program sponsored by the EU suitable for the rapid development and production of vaccines and protocols to fast-track registration of developed products to combat epidemic Zoonotic diseases that have the potential to affect the human population. Insight on the development of antigens by C1 will be presented.

Dyadic has also displayed the ability to easily express mAb’s.

The C1 expression system Dyadic’s C1 technology has the potential to change the way in which both animal health and human biotech and pharmaceutical companies bring their biologic vaccines and drugs to market faster, in greater volumes, at lower cost, and with newer beneficial properties, and most importantly save lives.

Dyadic believes that our current efforts, with or without potential partners, to successfully express several therapeutic proteins, will validate the C1 technology as one of the vital production platforms for developing & manufacturing biologic Vaccines and BioPharmaceuticals

Biography:

Jwee Chiek Er is a veterinary epidemiologist and a research scientist at the Norwegian Veterinary Institute. After graduating with BVSc at the University of Queensland, Australia in 1989, he worked as a public health inspector at slaughterhouses for pigs and poultry in Singapore for 13 years. He obtained a Master in Preventative Veterinary Medicine (MPVM) at UC Davis in 2000 and began his career as an epidemiologist. With the pandemic H1N1 virus emerging in the world and infecting the pigs in Norway for the first time for any influenza strain, he spent 5 five years conducting epidemiological research of this new influenza strain in Norwegian pigs and investigated production impact it has on pig production. His publications are listed as above. He received his Doctorate in Philosophy for his research in 2016 at the University of Life Sciences in Oslo. 

Abstract:

The incursion of influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus was detected by Norway’s active serosurveillance of its pig population in 2009. Since then, surveillance data from 2010 to 2014 revealed that 54% of 5643 herd tests involving 1567 pig herds and 28% of 23 036 blood samples screened positive for antibodies against influenza A virus. Positive herds were confirmed to have influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus infection by haemagglutination inhibition test. In 50% of positive herd tests, 560% of the sampled pigs in each herd had antibodies against influenza A(H1N1) pdm09 virus. This within-herd animal seroprevalence did not vary for type of production, herd size or year of test. The overall running mean of national herd seroprevalence, and annual herd incidence risks fluctuated narrowly around the means of 45% and 32%, respectively, with the highest levels recorded in the three densest pig-producing counties. The probability of a herd being seropositive varied in the five production classes, which were sow pools, multiplier herds, conventional sow herds, nucleus herds, and fattening herds in descending order of likelihood. Large herds were more likely to be seropositive. Seropositive herds were highly likely to be seropositive the following year. The study shows that influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus is established in the Norwegian pig population with recurrent and new herd infections every year with the national herd seroprevalence in 2014 hovering at around 43% (95% confidence interval 40–46%).

Biography:

Hejer Harrabi, is an university medical doctor, infectious diseases specialist, La Rabta University Hospital, Tunis El Manar University,Tunisia. Experience in France: clinical research assistant, referring doctor. Studies: University François Rabelais, Sfax Faculty of Medicine. Interests of study: Influenza, HIV nfection, viral hepatitis, travel medicine, tuberculosis, bone and joint infections

Abstract:

The purpose of this survey is to assess Influenza vaccination status and related knowledge, attitudes and beliefs among a national sample of primary care physicians and specialists likely to see patients at high risk for complications from Influenza.

Methodology: We are conducting a prospective cross-sectional survey in Tunis (Tunisia) from February 2017 to April 2017. A self-administered questionnaire covering knowledge, attitudes and beliefs related to Influenza was mailed to a sample of physicians who likely to see patients at high risk for complications from Influenza. Herein, we present the first results of the study during February 2017.

Results: In a first mailing, during February 2017, 150 physicians were included. The overall response was 54.6% (n=82). Physicians reported a very low vaccination rate: 12% (n=10). Of the 72 unvaccinated, 33.3 % considered low risk of catching or spreading Influenza, 26.3% did not have access to vaccine on site, 16.6 % feared the side effects of the vaccine and 5.5% considered influenza to be a benign illness. All the physicians recommend vaccination for their patients at high risk for complications from Influenza. They were also asked about the HCWs vaccination status in their departments: 26.8% of the physicians estimated that HCWs were vaccinated.

Biography:

Asma AYARI is a PhD student, she is starting her first steps in research after a Master degree in Microbiology, which allowed her to acquire knowledge in the field of bacterial screening. Interested about Medical and health science, for her thesis project she works on understanding the association between obesity and pulmonary infections working on a viral model (Influenza Virus) and a bacterial model (Streptococcus pneumonia). This experience allowed her to make the link between the Immune aspect of the infection and the potential metabolic impacts. 

Abstract:

Statement of the problem: Influenza type A virus (IAV), represents a worldwide threat to human health. Recently, it has been reported that besides young and old subjects, obese patients also present an increased susceptibility to IAV infection. Since obesity is associated with an excessive white adipose tissue (WAT) expansion, we questioned whether IAV could impact WAT and its main cellular components.

Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: C57/BL6 lean and high-fat diet-induced obese mice were infected with IAV (virus strain: H3N2, dose: 30 PFUs/mouse, route: intra-nasal). At 7 days post-infection, lungs, WAT, pancreas and liver were harvested for analysis of viral (M1 protein) and antiviral proteins gene expression. To analyze the impact of IAV infection on adipose tissue, WAT explants secretion from infected or uninfected lean and obese mice were analyzed. Then, to see whether the virus could target preadipocytes and mature adipocytes, we infected differentiated, or not, 3T3-L1 cell line. Cells were harvested for transcriptional analyses (tested genes: M1, Tlr3 and Mda5) and Supernatants were collected for the detection of newly formed virions and cytokines.

Findings: In vivo data showed that viral genome could be detected in the adipose tissue of infected mice. Moreover, in response to the infection, the adipose tissue produce more pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, thus demonstrating that IAV infection does impact WAT inflammatory state. In vitro tests showed that preadipocytes can be infected by IAV, yet without virion release. 

Biography:

Dr Arvind Singh Kushwaha graduated from Armed Forces Medical College in 1989 and did his MD in 1998 in Preventive and Social Medicine from Pune University. He is presently health officer of a Cantonment and a UG and PG teacher in the AFMC Pune. He has published more than 20 papers in reputed journals and has been awarded twice for best Research article in Community Medicine. His interest include infectious disease, outbreak investigation, social medicine and mental health amongst soldiers. 

Abstract:

Background: In April 2009, Mexican health authorities announced an outbreak of a novel H1N1 influenza virus, which subsequently caused a pandemic. The world is now moving into the post-pandemic period. The experience gained in handling this pandemic at various levels under different settings has provided us many lessons for the future.

Objective: To study the profile of various activities undertaken at flu screening centre as a response to pandemic influenza in a tertiary care hospital.

Methods: Record-based study conducted in a tertiary care hospital of Pune. Required data was collected from records of flu OPD, ward and local health authority and interviewing related staff. Study included data from October 2009 to October 2010.

Results: A total of 8020 people presenting with influenza like illness (ILI) were screened in the flu OPD under study. Out of these, only 388 (4.84%) met clinical criteria where throat samples were collected, out of which only 81 were found to be positive (20.88%). Total three fatalities (3.7%) occurred out of 81 who had tested positive. Most cases of flu were managed at home (76.54%) while only 19 (23.4%) lab confirmed cases of H1N1 required hospitalisation.

Conclusion: Majority of cases of H1N1 (2009) were managed at home. Early diagnosis, quick initiation of treatment, infection control measures, and good care at the hospital can effectively reduce morbidity and mortality in H1N1 pandemic.

Biography:

Ronen Tchelet joined Dyadic in May 2014 and has been Dyadic’s Vice President of Research and Business Development since January 2016. Dr. Tchelet received his Ph.D. in Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology from Tel Aviv University in 1993 and did his postdoctoral as an EERO fellow at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (EAWAG) in Switzerland. In the late 2000’s, he joined the API Division of TEVA Pharmaceutical Industries LTD., where he served as a Chief Technology Officer of Biotechnology and was the QA manager of COPAXONE® the flag ship TEVA¹s innovative drug. From 2007 through 2013, prior to joining Dyadic, Dr. Tchelet became the founder and the Managing Director of Codexis Laboratories Hungary kft. (CLH) At CLH, he established a state-of-the-art laboratory for strain engineering and all aspects of fermentation work including process optimization and scaling up. It was during this time that Dr. Tchelet engaged with the C1 technology that was successfully developed for the Biofuel and the Bio-Industrial enzymes fields.

Abstract:

For over 30 years Dyadic has proven itself, commercially and scientifically, as a high quality and highly productive producer of enzymes and proteins using a proprietary and patented expression system based on the Myceliopthora thermophila fungus, nicknamed C1.

The C1 platform technology is a hyper-productive fungal expression system used to develop & manufacture large quantities of desired proteins at industrial scale at significantly lower CapEx and OpEx costs.

Since the successful sale of Dyadic’s industrial biotech business to DuPont for US$75 million on December 31, 2015, we have been focused on applying the C1 technology platform to help enhance the development and manufacturing of biologic vaccines and drugs.

We achieved encouraging results, knowledge and experience in vaccine development from our prior research collaboration with Sanofi Pasteur that we believe can be leveraged and built upon with other partners.  During the collaboration, meaningful improvements were made to the C1 expression system to produce antigens of interest at high level with potentially better immune response.

Dyadic is one of a consortium of companies participating in the EU sponsored ZAPI research program.  ZAPI is a program sponsored by the EU suitable for the rapid development and production of vaccines and protocols to fast-track registration of developed products to combat epidemic Zoonotic diseases that have the potential to affect the human population. Insight on the development of antigens by C1 will be presented.

Dyadic has also displayed the ability to easily express mAb’s.

The C1 expression system Dyadic’s C1 technology has the potential to change the way in which both animal health and human biotech and pharmaceutical companies bring their biologic vaccines and drugs to market faster, in greater volumes, at lower cost, and with newer beneficial properties, and most importantly save lives.

Dyadic believes that our current efforts, with or without potential partners, to successfully express several therapeutic proteins, will validate the C1 technology as one of the vital production platforms for developing & manufacturing biologic Vaccines and BioPharmaceuticals.