To ensure preparedness for a pandemic, experts at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø are finding:

  • New ways to treat patients, including tools to help clinicians determine treatment in a dynamically changing and unknown environment.
  • Interventions for healthcare settings that help disrupted healthcare systems to function
  • Interventions and technologies that can be deployed nationally and internationally.
  • New vaccines

Experts working in this area

New and repurposed drugs
  • : Convergence science approaches to drug delivery and biomarker detection. Example (in Covid): Repurposing of drugs for COVID-19.
  • : Drug repurposing and interventions with TRV027 an antagonist of Angiotensin-II.
  • : Polymer- and lipid-based nanoparticles for targeted delivery of active pharmaceutical agents including nucleic acids and proteins. In Covid (example): Thermostable RNA formulations for vaccines and therapeutics.
  • : Drug design and translational immunology. Example (in Covid): Engineering of protein-based drugs that deal with cytokine storm inflammation after SARS-CoV-2 infection. 
  • : Inhibitor drug discovery. Example (in Covid): Acrylamide inhibitors for the treatment of Covid-19.
  • : Identification of targets for host-directed antiviral therapies and antiviral testing through large scale screening.
  • : Using computational pipelines for in silico drug screening leveraging single-cell and spatial transcriptomics datasets.
  • : Repurposing of biologics that target fibroproliferation, with the aim of preventing fibrosis in at-risk patients. Example (in Covid): New therapies and repurposed therapies for severe COVID-19 by investigating key driving signatures of fibrosis and necrosis in the lungs.
  • : Vascular biology and vascular haemostasis. Example (in Covid): Anti-thrombotic drugs for severe COVID-19 infection.
  • : Respiratory and transplant medicine, e.g., immunomodulatory therapy.
Drug regimens and clinical decision-making
  • : Clinical translation, treatment decision-making, access to medicine, patient safety. Example (in Covid): COVID-19 treatment guidelines group.
  • : Artificial intelligence for clinical decision-making. Example (in Covid): AI prediction of best treatment for Covid-19 patients.
  • : Clinical and translational research. Example: Assessing treatments for critically ill COVID-19 patients in an adaptive platform trial – REMAP-CAP.
  • : Antimicrobial resistance. Example (in Covid): AI for clinical decision-making around antibiotic prescriptions for COVID-19 patients.
  • : Scientific advice on the use of antivirals in respiratory infections and pandemic preparedness.
  • : Treatment of influenza (anti-virals, immune modulation) and exploring their impact on viral resistance (via REMAP CAP platform trial). 
Interventions for healthcare settings
  •   Interaction of the human body with (medical) devices; Friction science for clinical applications, including PPE for healthcare workers. Example (in Covid): Lubricant performance to reduce COVID-19 PPE-related skin injury.
  • Low-cost ventilators for use in LMICs.
  • : Nanotechnology solutions for infection, including self-disinfecting surfaces (e.g. for masks/air-filter devices), drug delivery, and diagnostics. Example (in Covid): Toward nanotechnology-enabled approaches against the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • : Advanced manufacturing and design engineering. Example (in Covid): Custom-made PPE for frontline healthcare workers.
  • : Healthcare epidemiology and infection prevention and control. Example (in Covid): Healthcare SARS-CoV-2 transmission and interventions (e.g., precision prescribing, HEPA-based air decontamination systems, single patient rooms).
  • Engineering solutions to reducing the spread of aerosols in hospital wards. Example (in Covid): Development of Zephyr hood – an aerosol contaminant device.
  • : Cancer epidemiology and prevention. Example (in Covid): Understanding and interventions for the accumulating number of undiagnosed cases of cancer and cardiovascular disease due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • : Laser optics and software to study aerosol generation. Example (in Covid): New protocols for safe delivery of dental care during Covid-19.
  • : Low-cost ventilators for use in LMICs.
Interventions for public health and society
  • : Incentives for innovation and access to innovation. Example: Balancing sustainability of innovation with sustainability of healthcare. 
  • : Low-power electronics and app design. Example (in Covid): Contact tracing app for Covid-19 built on privacy design principles.  
  • : Computation and AI for health and disease; AI to identify bioactive compounds in foods with antiviral properties; precision nutrition strategies to support future pandemic preparedness. Example (in Covid): An AI-powered patient triage platform for future viral outbreaks; 'hyperfoods' to target SARS-CoV-2 host-pathogen interactions. 
New vaccines

Examples: Listen and watch