The TRANSVAC User selection panel is responsible for the selection of users for the transnational access services. It is composed of representatives of each access work package and five independent external experts.

The USP will use the report of the Scientific Advisory Committee on the peer-review of the applications as an aid in making their selection.

Clearly defined selection criteria will be used to prioritise the vaccines and include the following:

• Progress of the vaccine towards clinical trials – impact of the testing on the clinical development process.
• Importance of the vaccine – e.g. probability that the vaccine will improve quality of human life.
• Relevance of the vaccine to the particular tests – likelihood that the data generated will be beneficial.

The selection of users will follow the principles of transparency, fairness and impartiality, and will take into account both the relevance and the scientific excellence of the proposals. Members of the TRANSVAC USP sign a confidentiality agreement containing provisions not less strict than those contained in this Consortium Agreement.

Standard Operating Procedure of the User Selection Panel

Dr James Robertson (Chair)

HPA National Institute for Biological Standards and Control

Dr James S Robertson is a Principal Scientist in Virology at the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC), a centre of the Health Protection Agency, UK.  He is a core member of the Vaccine Working Party (VWP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA).  With a broad expertise in virology and molecular biology, he has contributed considerably to regulatory issues and the development of EU and WHO guidelines on pandemic influenza, many other vaccine issues and guidelines concerned with the viral safety of biologicals and biotechnology derived therapeutics.  His laboratory is dedicated to the research and development of influenza vaccines.

Dr Barry Walker (Vice chair)

HPA National Institute for Biological Standards and Control

Dr Barry Walker is a Principal Scientist in the Biotherapeutics Group at the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (a centre of the Health Protection Authority) and is the lead scientist in the Immunology and Cellular Immunity Section. He has maintained an active research interest in tuberculosis and the immunology of vaccines against poverty related diseases, including HIV and malaria. Dr Walker trained in immunology at the University of Western Australia, and completed his Ph.D. in the immunology of renal transplantation. Subsequently he moved to the UK, to the Royal Postgraduate Medical School, where his interest in mycobacterial infection and vaccinology was fostered. After a period at the National Institute for Medical Research at Mill Hill, he moved to his current position at NIBSC where has continued his involvement in tuberculosis, HIV and malaria.

Dr Gwyn Davies

Independent business consultant

John Gwynfor Davies MA, DPhil (Oxon), works as an independent business consultant since 2005 and is Honorary Senior Lecturer at St. George’s University of London since 1995. He is also Board member of Wittycell SA, France since 2006 and Medipol SA, Switzerland since 2010.
He has extensive experience in industrial vaccine adjuvant research and development.
Previous position held are several posts leading to Head of R&D Projects and Partnerships, OM PHARMA, Switzerland 1991 – 2005, chairman of the European Adjuvant Advisory Committee (EAAC) 2007-2010 and academic research posts at Geneva and Oxford Universities.

Dr Jan Langermans

Central Veterinary Institute, Wageningen UR

Jan A.M. Langermans, Ph.D., has been Chairman of the Animal Science Department, BPRC, Rijswijk, The Netherlands since 2008. His research interests include the development of animal models for infectious disease research, vaccine development, and immunology. Jan received his Ph.D. in 1992 in Leiden (with honours), and was Assistant Professor at LUMC in Leiden from 1992 to 1996. He headed the Parasitic and Bacterial Immunology Department at BPRC, Rijswijk from 1996-2003, covering malaria, TB and schistosoma research. Jan was Director of the Experimental Animal Services and BioMedical Research, ASG Wageningen UR, Lelystad  between 2003-2008.

Prof Martin Cranage

St George’s University of London

Martin Patrick Cranage, PhD, Professor, Hotung Chair of Molecular Vaccinology, Centre for Infection & Immunity, Clinical Sciences Division, St George’s University of London. His broad research interest is translational immunovirology with a specific focus on vaccine discovery for the prevention of mucosally acquired infection with HIV/SIV. Previous positions include scientific leader at the Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research, Salisbury UK, John Lucas Walker Senior Student in the Department of Pathology University of Cambridge and Research Associate in the Department of Virology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne.

Dr Nicolas Collin

University of Lausanne

Nicolas Collin is Head of the Vaccine Formulation Laboratory at University of Lausanne, Switzerland. The laboratory is a platform for global access to vaccine adjuvants and a training centre for vaccine formulation. Formerly, Dr Collin was technical officer at the World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva, and coordinator of the WHO vaccine task force during the pandemic influenza (H1N1) in 2009. Prior to this, he worked four years as project leader for the industry (Merial, Lyon) and completed a post-doctoral training at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on Leishmania vaccines. Nicolas Collin is Doctor in Veterinary Medicine (National Veterinary School of Toulouse) and holds a PhD in Molecular Virology (University of Toulouse III).

Prof Michel Klein, MD

VaxiBio Inc.

Chairman of VaxiBio Inc., Canada, he graduated from the Institut Pasteur in immunology. He held the positions of VP Research of Pasteur Mérieux Connaught then of VP, Science and Technology, of Aventis-Pasteur. He was Professor of Immunology at the University of Toronto for 25 years. He served on the EDCTP Advisory Board of the EU. He is a permanent visiting professor with NHRI, Taiwan. He is the author of more than 200 scientific publications and 350 patents in the fields of vaccinology, immunology, infectious diseases and biotechnology. He serves on several Boards of Directors and Scientific Advisory Boards. He is a knight in the French order of the Légion d’Honneur.

Dr Roger LeGrand

Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique

Dr Roger Le Grand has been heading the Immuno-Virology Division at the Institute of Emerging Diseases and Innovative Therapies at the Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA), France, since 2007. Dr. Le Grand has worked as an expert providing consulting services to several French national research agencies, the French government, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, as well as the WHO. His research interests previously focused on non human primate models of human viral infections for study host/pathogen interactions and prevention of virus transmission. Nowadays, Dr. Le Grand’s research group is developing NHP models for HIV, HBV, Dengue, Yellow Fever and Chikungunya. He is particularly interested in analyzing the molecular and cellular mechanisms that play a role in chronic viral infections as well as emerging viral infections.

Prof Stefan Kaufmann

Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology

Prof Dr Dr h.c. Stefan H.E. Kaufmann. Founding director and director of the Department of Immunology of the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin. Professor for microbiology and immunology at the Charité, Humboldt University, Berlin, and honorary professor at the University Clinics Benjamin Franklin, Free University Berlin. From 1987 to 1991 professor for medical microbiology and immunology, and from 1991 to 1998 full professor for immunology at the University of Ulm. President of the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). Past president and honorary member of the German Society for Immunology. Past President of the European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS). Scientific interests: immunity to bacterial pathogens with emphasis on tuberculosis and rational vaccine design.