Vaccine adjuvant innovation is increasingly focused on control rather than amplification, aiming to shape immune responses to meet the needs of emerging vaccine indications and platforms.
This panel discussion brings together perspectives from pharma, biotech, academia, and government to examine how our understanding of adjuvant mechanisms of action is evolving, and how these insights are informing the design of next-generation adjuvant strategies.
The discussion will explore emerging approaches, including innate immunity-targeting systems, and materials- and delivery-led technologies. Panelists will also consider how the regulatory landscape is evolving as new adjuvant modalities and combinations move toward the clinic.
Attend this webinar to:
- Understand how new insights into adjuvant mechanisms of action are shaping strategies to control immune response
- Explore emerging adjuvant approaches, including innate immune agonists, delivery- and materials-led systems, and platform-integrated adjuvanticity
- Examine the role of adjuvants in mucosal vaccination strategies
Register now to hear perspectives from pharma, biotech, academia, and government on the evolving science, emerging approaches, and regulatory considerations shaping next-generation vaccine adjuvants.
Derek O’Hagan
Head of Vaccine Adjuvants and Delivery Systems at GSK R&D
Previously, Derek was the Global Head of Discovery Support and New Technology at GSK, leading Teams in Discovery support at three Research centers. In the past he was VP, Global Head of Vaccine Chemistry and Formulation for Novartis Vaccines. He is a Fellow of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists and was previously awarded the Conference Science medal of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, and the Young Investigator Research Achievement Award of the Controlled Release Society. He was named as the ‘most inventive scientist’ in Chiron Corp, Emeryville. He has published 175 peer reviewed publications (h-index109, Google Scholar) and edited several books on vaccine adjuvants. He is a named inventor on more than 70 patents.
Ed Lavelle
Professor of Vaccine Immunology at Trinity College Dublin
Ed was elected a Member of the Royal Irish Academy (MRIA) in 2021. He has held several leadership roles, including President of the Irish Society for Immunology (2012–2019), Head of the School of Biochemistry at Trinity College Dublin (2017–2020), and President of the European Congress of Immunology 2024. He currently serves as Academic Director of the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute at Trinity College Dublin. His research focuses on the development of adjuvants for injectable and mucosal vaccines targeting infectious diseases, with particular emphasis on understanding their mechanisms of action. His laboratory also conducts research on adjuvants for therapeutic cancer vaccines.
Jay T. Evans
Chief Scientific and Strategy Officer of Inimmune Corporation and Director of the Center for Translational Medicine, University of Montana Missoula
Jay Evans, PhD, is the Co-Founder and Chief Scientific & Strategy Officer (CSSO) of Inimmune Corporation (Missoula, MT) and Director of the Center for Translational Medicine at the University of Montana. Before starting Inimmune, Dr. Evans spent 16 years with GSK Vaccines, where he led the identification and development of novel vaccines and immunomodulators and managed multiple vaccine and immunotherapy programs from early discovery through IND submission. Prior to GSK, he conducted research in HIV immunology and lentiviral gene therapy at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. His research centers on the discovery and development of next-generation vaccines, adjuvants, and immunotherapeutics across a broad range of targets. Dr. Evans has published more than 75 peer-reviewed research articles and is an inventor on 15 patents in vaccine research and development.
Ari Joffe
Program Officer at the Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Ari Joffe, PhD, is a Program Officer at the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). He manages a portfolio of research programs, grants, and contracts on various topics relating to fundamental immunology. This includes research projects investigating the discovery, development, and mechanisms of action of vaccine adjuvants.
