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NCIRS part of key COVID-19 vaccine research

The National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) is part of a leading group of New South Wales (NSW) experts that will pioneer Australia-first research to inform vaccine policy in the state and beyond.

The Vaccine, Infection and Immunology (VIIM) Collaborative Research Group will receive more than $4.5 million in funding from the NSW government over 3 years to study the clinical and immunological responses to COVID-19 vaccines in NSW recipients.

NCIRS Director Professor Kristine Macartney said, “As we are enter the ‘vaccine era’ of the pandemic, and we engage with the virus, we need to have the best science behind us.”

“Because we have mostly not been exposed to the virus, we are not immune and are going to rely heavily on the vaccine,” she said.

“The vaccination rollout in NSW presents a unique opportunity to study COVID-19 vaccines with some of the world’s most complete data on virus transmission. The research will tackle the ‘trickiest questions’ about the vaccines in certain populations and study efficacy against new variants.”

This research will also establish a biobank of specimens which can be used for current and future research.

VIIM brings together the leading vaccine, infection and immunology researchers and practitioners in NSW from Western Sydney Local Health District, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney Children’s Hospital Network, NSW Health Pathology, the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, the University of Sydney’s Marie Bashir Institute, the University of NSW, Westmead Institute of Medical Research, the Centenary Institute and the Kirby Institute. 

Read more about NCIRS COVID-19 response work here