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Cécile van Els is a professor specializing in Vaccinology, particularly focusing on the correlates of protection in immune responses to infectious diseases. Her research aims to unravel the immune response chain of the immune system, which is crucial for developing effective and sustainable protection against these diseases. Key properties of an effective immune response, according to her work, include specificity, quantity, quality, and the localization of tissue-resident memory cells. The so-called correlates of protection, which vary by pathogen, remain unknown for many infectious diseases, necessitating further investigation. Van Els emphasizes the growing demand for knowledge regarding the effects of vaccines on human infectious disease control, highlighting their significant contribution to public health by reducing disease spread. The impact of vaccination also extends to the veterinary field, where it has a major social and economic importance. She notes that emerging infectious diseases in humans and animals, exacerbated by urbanization, increased travel, climate change, and intensive livestock farming, require the development of new and improved vaccines to enhance prevention strategies.
Department of Psychology