Vaccinopolis Antwerp in Belgium by Proof of the sum

Article source: Proof of the sum

Vaccinopolis opened its doors on Friday 25 March 2022. Vaccines against all kinds of pathogens will be tested and improved in the unique vaccine research center on Campus Drie Eiken, accelerating the fight against new and existing diseases. “With Vaccinopolis we put our country on the map”, says driving force Pierre Van Damme (UAntwerp).

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

• Architects: Proof of the sum
• Project: Vaccinopolis Antwerp
• Location: Antwerp, Belgium
• Photography: Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Vaccine development is one of the greatest global challenges today. “Corona has pushed us very hard on the facts,” explains vaccinologist Prof. Pierre Van Damme (UAntwerp). “But the awareness has been there for a long time. The climate is changing, people are living closer together, we are traveling more and more and we are getting older: all evolutions that contribute to a faster and broader spread of viruses.”

Together with its partners, the University of Antwerp is developing an innovative ecosystem in pandemic management. Vaccinopolis is an important cornerstone in that ecosystem. Candidate vaccines will be tested at the center against numerous infectious diseases, such as RSV, dengue or whooping cough. It will also be investigated how, for example, the known flu vaccines can be improved.

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Administer pathogens

The ambulatory studies of the Center for the Evaluation of Vaccinations will be monitored in the brand new complex. In such studies, the participating volunteers come for regular check-ups. But what makes Vaccinopolis truly unique is its ability to conduct CHIM studies.

Van Damme: “CHIM stands for Controlled Human Infection Model and means that test subjects are first given a vaccine or a placebo and then deliberately administered a reduced dose of the pathogen. This allows the researchers to test whether and how a particular vaccine candidate works. There is no comparable facility on the European mainland. For comparable facilities you have to go to the United States or Great Britain.”

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Full quarantine

Vaccinopolis has thirty beds. In some studies, the test subjects will remain in full quarantine for several weeks. On the one hand, this is done for safety reasons: the pathogens must of course not be given free rein in society. On the other hand, the volunteers can be closely monitored.

“That way you can also take daily samples from the test subjects,” says Dr. Ilse De Coster, head of the clinical trial team. “Based on those characteristics, we can eventually try to predict how specific groups of people will respond to a particular vaccine. Each study is pre-approved by an independent ethics committee and only studies are conducted with pathogens for which there is already a treatment.”

Different security levels

The building was completed in record time: the entire process was completed in fourteen months. “Usually, the realization of such a project takes four to five years”, explains architect Roy Pype (Proof of the sum). “But the circumstances were exceptional: COVID-19 proves that viruses can strike quickly and unexpectedly.”

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Under the consortium name ‘IMM/Unity’, designers and builders have integrally designed and realized the project. Proof of the sum, Exilab, Abstract Architecten, burO Groen and Establis were responsible for the integral design. The realization was in the hands of Jansen Building Group, Jansen Cleanrooms and Cordeel. Imtech Belgium, together with Jansen Cleanrooms, will be responsible for maintenance for fifteen years. The work was done quickly, but nothing was left to chance in the field of biosecurity. Strict decontamination procedures apply throughout the complex and special filters filter all outgoing air.

UAntwerp x ULB

The Belgian federal government invested 13 million euros in Vaccinopolis. Private partners also invested in the realization of the project. There is close cooperation with the ULB: the Brussels university is very successful in the field of human vaccine immunology and from now on does this from a high-quality immunological laboratory.

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Marcel van der Burg

Image Courtesy © Proof of the sum

Image Courtesy © Proof of the sum

Image Courtesy © Proof of the sum

Image Courtesy © Proof of the sum

Image Courtesy © Proof of the sum

Tags: Antwerp, Belgium

Category: Science Centre

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