BBSRC-Defra Engineering Next Generation Veterinary Vaccine Technology Platforms Partnering Workshop, Hosted by IVVN and BSI

24 June 2025
Nottingham, United Kingdom
Date: Tuesday, 24 June 2025 
Location: Nottingham, United Kingdom 
Format: In-person, all-day event 
Cost: Free to attend (travel and accommodation not covered) 
If you are interested in attending the workshop, please complete our Expression of Interest Form by 19 May 2025. Please note that this is not a ticketed event, and submission of the form does not guarantee a place at the workshop.
About the Workshop

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) have launched a £12.5 million funding call to support the development of next generation veterinary vaccine technology platforms.

To support potential applicants, the International Veterinary Vaccinology Network (IVVN) and the British Society for Immunology (BSI) will host an in-person workshop in Nottingham, United Kingdom on 24 June 2025.

Workshop Background

Veterinary vaccines are cost-effective tools for controlling diseases, improving animal welfare, productivity, and food security, while reducing reliance on antimicrobials and preventing zoonotic disease spill overs. Despite progress, gaps remain in producing safe and effective vaccines, and outbreaks demand faster solutions. Conventional vaccines are often more time-consuming to produce, involve a greater risk of reversion to virulence, and need more customized development against emerging or rapidly evolving pathogens. New strategies for immunogen design and genetic engineering (including recombinant DNA technologies) have contributed to the rise of next-generation vaccine platforms that enable a more potent immune response. These advances in bioscience, tools, technology, data science and AI provide an opportunity to develop a toolbox of vaccine platforms which could be used to produce effective vaccines.

Speakers:

1. Dr Mike Francis - BioVacc Consulting

2. Professor Gary Entrican - University of Edinburgh / Roslin

3. Professor Linda King - Oxford Brookes University

4. Dr Joanne Del Rosario - DIOSynVax

Purpose

The purpose of the workshop is to:

  • Discuss current advances in vaccine platform technology research and innovation and how these platform technology research can transform veterinary vaccinology
  • Provide a networking opportunity for participants to identify research collaborators in other, different disciplines and to scope potential project ideas/research avenues
  • Bring together experts from different disciplines to develop research consortia to apply for the veterinary vaccines funding call
  • Embed a One Health approach.
Objectives

The objectives of the workshop are to:

  • Bring together researchers from across disciplines and sectors (e.g., AI, structural biology, engineering biology, immunomics) to facilitate knowledge exchange and the formation of new interdisciplinary research collaborations
  • Develop a richer understanding of the vaccine technology platform research in the UK and internationally
  • Ensure the readiness of the veterinary vaccinology research and innovation community to generate successful applications for a potential programme.
Workshop Details and Registration

If you are interested in attending the workshop, please complete our Expression of Interest Form by 19 May 2025.

Please note that this is not a ticketed event and submission of the form does not guarantee a place at the workshop.

Applications will be reviewed by representatives from BBSRC, Defra, the British Society for Immunology (BSI) and the International Veterinary Vaccinology Network (IVVN).

We particularly welcome applications from Early Career Researchers.

You will be notified by 23 May 2025 regarding the outcome of your application. Successful applicants will receive further details about their participation in the workshop, including the agenda, venue, schedule, and specific ways they will be involved on the day.

The workshop is free to attend, but successful applications must cover their own travel and accommodation costs.

For any queries, please contact the IVVN team at ivvn [at] roslin [dot] ed [dot] ac [dot] uk.