WELCOME
It is my great pleasure to invite you to the 3rd International Neonatal & Maternal
Immunization Symposium (INMIS). This symposium ‘Global Strategies for Global
Impact’ will be held in The Gambia, West Africa on the 4 th till 6th of November
2015, supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC) Unit (UK), The Gambia.
This meeting was initially scheduled for March 2015, but we postponed it due to
the Ebola crisis in West Africa. We are pleased to say that we have not seen a
single case of Ebola ever in The Gambia, and that the regional situation is now
so much improved that we feel confident to now invite you all back to our coast.
Following the great success of our first two symposia in Turkey in 2010 and
2013, we are looking forward to the first INMIS symposium to be hosted in
Africa. This exciting location will put the opportunities and challenges of neonatal
and maternal immunisation into a global context. Neonatal and early infant
morbidity and mortality remain the highest in sub-Saharan Africa and other
resource limited settings, and this is where novel preventative strategies are
likely to have the greatest potential to benefit pregnant women and their
infants.
Over the last few years, a number of clinical trials have enrolled mothers and
infants into vaccine studies, including in Africa. This next INMIS will allow us to
assess the lessons learned from these and other ongoing international trials, to
discuss current scientific progress in maternal and neonatal immunology,
infections and immunizations, in the broader context of infectious disease
epidemiology and public health.
The symposium will provide an update on key areas in maternal and neonatal
immunisation including the development and utilization of vaccines for pathogens
that affect maternal and child health, such as pertussis, influenza, group B
streptococcus, respiratory syncytial virus, meningococcus and pneumococcus.
The symposium will cover the latest progress in our understanding of the basic
science of maternal, neonatal and vaccine immunology with a focus on human
studies. This will include the effect of maternal immunity on infant vaccine
responses and the role of breast milk and the microbiome in early immunity.
With a focus on practical aspects of research and implementation, we will discuss
opportunities and potential barriers for pregnancy and neonatal immunization.
Interactive panel discussions will feature throughout the 2 days and will involve
leaders from international funding agencies, including the BMGF, who is
supporting the symposium, and representatives from WHO, vaccine industry and
researchers.
Attended by many international leaders in the field, the symposium promises
once again to provide a comprehensive scientific and practical update for all
those with an interest in maternal and neonatal infection, immunity and
vaccination. The African setting will provide a lively forum in which to discuss the
‘hot topics’ in this exciting and evolving field.
A call for abstracts will open in the next 4 weeks.
We look forward to seeing you in The Gambia in 2015!
On behalf of the organisers,
Sincerely
Professor Beate Kampmann