National Institute of Health Korea Vaccine Resarch Center

Organization

Purpose
  • Establish strategies of national vaccine development throughout the full cycle and support its commercialization
  • Operate and manage the Infrastructure of Korea Vaccine Research Center(K-VRC)
  • Establish/operate the vaccine development cooperation system domestically and internationally
Research Areas
Strengthen governance to support the full-cycle of vaccine R&D
  • Enact/amend related laws and administrative rules, establish/adjust mid- to long-term plans for establishing a support system for vaccine R&D
  • Operate a cooperation system between related ministries to promote integrated support measures for developing the COVID-19 vaccines
Internal and external collaboration for vaccine development
  • Expand and strengthen partnerships with multiple agencies and ministerial organizations, private organizations, international organizations, and overseas agencies for global cooperation and joint countermeasures
Establish national infrastructure for vaccine R&D and expand non-clinical support to it
  • Promote efficiency of supporting the evaluation of its effectiveness (Immunogenicity Assay, In vivo) by developing detailed operation management guidelines and standard operating procedures and establishing a portal system
  • Support equipment and experiments for analyzing the effectiveness of candidate vaccines developed in the private sector.
  • Continue non-clinical support on the private sector through verifying biosafety level 3 laboratory and expanding its operation
Strategic development of public vaccines and supporting it
  • Strengthen and support infectious disease research, such as in-house development (candidate material development) and technology securement of vaccines for unsolved infectious disease
  • Expand the project of non-clinical research on public vaccine development (Establishment of standard animal models and non-clinical standard test methods)
Purpose
  • Strengthen the national safety net to manage infectious diseases by developing vaccines against them and securing basic technologies
Research Areas
Secure a platform for rapid vaccine development to manage emerging infectious diseases.
  • Secure mRNA-based vaccine technology through domestic and international joint research. Then, establish a platform technology for rapid vaccine development.
  • Develop various state-of-the-art vaccine platform technologies such as viral vector and subunit
Strengthen the vaccine development capabilities for major infectious diseases and countermeasures to them in the future
  • R&D of vaccine to manage unresolved infectious diseases, such as next-generation tuberculosis and mumps
  • R&D of vaccine to manage Emerging infectious diseases such as COVID-19, Zika, SFTS
  • Promote the development of full-cycle public vaccines against viruses, such as third-generation smallpox and adenovirus type 55, to secure national security
Secure vaccine technology of enhancing immunity
  • Develop and apply vaccine delivery technologies, such as administration methods and vaccine formulations applicable to various vaccine platforms
  • Search Immune boosters through public-private cooperation and technology introduction, and promote research on the evaluation of its efficacy
Promote translational research on developing vaccines
  • Support non-clinical research on the developed vaccine for diseases, such as COVID-19
  • Strengthen the domestic and international R&D cooperative system for the Vaccine lifecycle
  • Strengthen the existing infrastructure and establish an International Joint Research Network to promote the commercialization of public vaccines
Purpose
  • Collect, manage, and utilize pathogen resources
  • Collect, analyze, and evaluate pathogen resources
  • R&D using pathogen resources
  • Establish and operate pathogen resource-related infrastructure
  • Establish and operate the distribution system of information on Pathogen Resources
Research Areas
Secure useful pathogen resources and enhance stable conservation management capabilities
  • Expand qualitative, quantitative, and strategic collection of pathogen resources
  • Establish the system of conservation and management that secures the usefulness and stability of pathogen resources
  • Enhance the management base of pathogen resources and overhaul its system
Enhance the value of pathogen resources and promote their distribution and utilization
  • Add values of Pathogen Resources
  • Strengthen the foundation to promote the use of useful pathogen resource
Establish the cooperative network of domestic and international pathogen resources
  • Establish the cooperative network of international pathogen resources
  • Strengthen domestic connection and cooperation on pathogen resources through communication and participation
Purpose
  • Securing vaccine sovereignty by upgrading the international-level vaccine clinical research system
Research Areas
Vaccine clinical test policy planning
  • Establish clinical test strategies on Emerging infectious diseases and undeveloped vaccines
  • Operate an expert council for clinical test support and collaboration on internal and external clinical research
Design domestic vaccine clinical tests and provide advice
  • Establish vaccine’s clinical test cluster to vitalize research on vaccine clinical tests
  • Establish mid- to long-term plans for clinical research and its road-maps to develop vaccines in Korea.
  • Vitalize clinical test translational research to commercialize vaccines
Support private sectors to evaluate the efficacy of vaccine clinical tests
  • Support the commercialization of vaccine candidates
  • Support clinical test and clinical specimen analysis
  • Provide facilities, equipment, and technologies to vitalize clinical tests
Develop the evaluation index of vaccine's clinical test and its analysis program
  • Develop and standardize immunogenicity evaluation methods and standard materials
  • Establish and supply an infrastructure system of analyzing clinical specimens while meeting international standards
Investigate and research vaccination-related immunity
  • Perform a study on immunity to establish a management plan for infectious diseases, national vaccination policy, and quarantine measures
  • Investigate antibodies to novel infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, and evaluate immunogenicity after vaccination