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Webinars COVID-19 Webinar: Revving Up to Warp Speed

Operation Warp Speed is accelerating progress toward COVID-19 vaccines at a previously unimaginable pace. A massive undertaking like this requires targeted emergency funding and cross-agency coordination. These efforts are built on decades of discoveries made possible by federal investments. Basic, translational and clinical research, including pathogen genomics and DNA technology platforms, have accelerated our ability to define, diagnose and develop countermeasures to zoonotic and emerging infectious diseases such as Ebola, Zika and now COVID-19. Hear from experts who have conducted groundbreaking fundamental microbial research and vaccine development about the building blocks that led to the COVID-19 vaccine candidates, and why sustained funding for basic science is essential to progress against future infectious diseases.

Panelists

  • Susan R. Weiss, Ph.D., Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
  • Peter Jay Hotez, M.D., Ph.D., Dean of National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine and Co-Director, Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development
  • Moderator: Stacey Schultz-Cherry, Ph.D., Full Member (Professor), Department of Infectious Diseases and Deputy Director, WHO Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Q & A After Chat

After the webinar, Dr. Weiss and Dr. Hotez participated in an engaging after chat to answer a number of pressing questions posed by webinar participants about COVID-19 vaccine development and function. You can find the entire session here or selectively view the questions you are most interested in below. 
 
Susan R. Weiss, Ph.D. and Peter Jay Hotez, M.D., Ph.D., discussing the groundbreaking fundamental microbial research and vaccine development that led to the COVID-19 vaccine candidates, and why sustained funding for basic science is essential to progress against future infectious diseases.
Q1:How does the COVID-19 vaccine work?
Q2: What makes a virus cause a pandemic versus a minor cold? What have we learned?
Q3: Will the newly identified UK SARS-CoV-2 respond to the vaccines?
Q4: Why are some sub-populations disproportionately susceptible to COVID-19?
Q5: What’s the role of the social sciences in addressing COVID-19?
Q6: Which past discoveries and research investments are driving progress against COVID-19 today?
Q7: What are the challenges of working with RNA viruses?
Q8: What is the risk of allergic responses to RNA vaccines?
Q9: Would a universal vaccine for SARS 1, SARS 2 and MERS ever be possible?

​Special Guest Remarks

The Honorable Rob Portman, U.S. Senator from Ohio
The Honorable Roy Blunt, U.S. Senator from Missouri

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