Mission
The Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccine Research conducts fundamental research on how the body successfully reacts to vaccines and battles infections and conversely, how infectious pathogens escape immune surveillance.
Overview
Modern medicine has made tremendous strides in fighting infectious diseases, but there is much more work to be done. Every year, influenza strikes millions of people, many of them fatally. Whooping cough and measles have made a comeback as the number of people who refuse to vaccinate their children grows. One third of the world’s population is infected with latent tuberculosis. Without treatment, about 5 to 10 percent of infected people will develop TB disease at some time in their lives.
Coronavirus Task Force
Meanwhile, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is sweeping the globe, taking the lives of hundreds of thousands. La Jolla Institute, one of the leading global organizations dedicated to studying the immune system, is stepping up to provide much needed information and real solutions for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We have launched a multi-lab Coronavirus Task Force that capitalizes on our competitive advantages of unique skill in infectious disease research, state-of-the-art technology and highly collaborative organization to respond to the current crisis and prepare for future emerging diseases. Our other work on HIV, Ebola, Dengue, Zika, and Cytomegalovirus are further laying the groundwork for developing vaccines for these serious infections.
COVID-19 Vaccines Resource Guide
With the national rollout of COVID-19 vaccines underway there are many questions circulating about the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccines to be approved for use by the public, so we put together a brief, easy-to-understand COVID-19 Vaccines Resource Guide.
THE VISIONARIES
LIFE WITHOUT DISEASE
The 30-minutes documentary “Life without Disease” by The Visionaries, an award-winning public television series hosted by Sam Waterston, showcases the critical work of La Jolla Institute for Immunology scientists working on the front lines of infectious disease including COVID-19.
Members
Latest News
Your body remembers common cold coronaviruses from childhood. How can you get the same immunity to COVID-19?
LA JOLLA, CA—For a glimpse into the future of SARS-CoV-2 immunity, scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) are
LJI scientists discover clue to stopping Lassa virus infection
LA JOLLA, CA—Lassa fever is a viral illness that is far too common in West Africa. Although it can have
Rethinking the rabies vaccine
LA JOLLA—Rabies virus kills a shocking 59,000 people each year, many of them children. Some victims, especially kids, don’t realize
LJI scientists publish first head-to-head comparison of four COVID-19 vaccines
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that “Participants given the Janssen/J&J vaccine had the highest percentage of
Amazing mucosa
“The whole mucosal immune system is so fascinating. It has to operate in an environment of extremes.”
Targeting a human protein may stop Ebola virus in its tracks
LA JOLLA, CA—To treat Ebola virus infections, researchers are taking a close look at a key piece of the virus: