Workshop on TÜSEB-Supported COVID-19 Vaccine Projects

To mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has significantly affected both the world and our country, the Health Institutes of Türkiye (TÜSEB) initiated and closely monitored the scientific and financial support processes for six domestic vaccine development projects. Within this framework, the "Workshop on TÜSEB-Supported COVID-19 Vaccine Projects" was held on March 21-22, 2021, at the Aziz Sancar Research and Development Center in Ankara. The workshop focused on the comprehensive scientific evaluation of the current status and the latest advancements achieved in these domestic projects.

The first day of the "Workshop on TÜSEB-Supported COVID-19 Vaccine Projects" commenced with the opening address by Prof. Erhan AKDOĞAN, PhD, President of TÜSEB, followed by a special message conveyed to the workshop by Nobel Laureate Prof. Aziz SANCAR. The program continued with a presentation by Prof. Aykut ÖZDARENDELİ, PhD, of Erciyes University, regarding the development process of Türkiye's first domestic COVID-19 vaccine candidate—supported by TÜSEB and currently in Phase 2—alongside an overview of vaccine development platforms. Subsequently, Assoc. Prof. Zafer SEZER, who coordinates the clinical trials for the nation’s first Phase 2 vaccine candidate, provided detailed insights into the Clinical Phase I and II processes of the domestic COVID-19 vaccine and shared experiences from the Erciyes University Good Clinical Practice and Research Center (IKUM). In another TÜSEB-supported project, Prof. Serhat ÜNAL, MD, of Hacettepe University, delivered a presentation on "Phase III Vaccine Trials and the Conduct of Clinical Research in Türkiye." He emphasized that TÜSEB plays a critical and leading role in steering clinical trials within the scope of Türkiye's own Phase III studies. Following the presentations, a Q&A session was moderated by Rabia ÇAKIR KOÇ, PhD, President of the TÜSEB Biotechnology Institute. The session concluded with Prof. Aykut ÖZDARENDELİ, Assoc. Prof. Zafer SEZER, Prof. Serhat ÜNAL, and Veterinary Specialist Öznur İNAN addressing questions from the participants.

The second day of the workshop commenced with a presentation titled "Product-Oriented TÜSEB Project Supports" by Batuhan YEŞİLYURT, MSc, Head of the TÜSEB Project Management and Support Department. This was followed by a session on "Animal Experiments in Vaccine Studies" delivered by Veterinary Specialist Öznur İNAN, IDEA Representative. Subsequently, the progress of COVID-19 vaccine candidate projects in the pre-clinical stage, supported by TÜSEB, was presented by Assoc. Prof. Semra AYDIN (Hacettepe University), Prof. Tarlan MAMMEDOV, PhD (Akdeniz University), Prof. Kadir TURAN, PhD (Marmara University), Prof. Ahmet HACIMÜFTÜOĞLU, MD, PhD (Atatürk University), and Assoc. Prof. Serap DERMAN (Yıldız Technical University). In the final presentation, Gökhan ÖZKAN, MSc, Coordinator of the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit of the TİTCK Clinical Trials Department, shared strategic insights regarding the "Transition to Clinical Trials in Vaccine Development. "Following the presentations, a Q&A session was moderated by Rabia ÇAKIR KOÇ, PhD, Acting President of the TÜSEB Biotechnology Institute. The session concluded with Batuhan YEŞİLYURT, MSc, Öznur İNAN, and Gökhan ÖZKAN, MSc, addressing the participants' inquiries. The workshop finalized with a closing speech by Prof. Erhan AKDOĞAN, PhD, President of TÜSEB, who emphasized the vital importance of R&D activities in health sciences and technologies.