With the emergence of COVID–19, we have all been subject to a massive global pandemic that has turned our lives upside down. We have also witnessed a vaccine revolution, where billions of people around the world have been immunized with a novel mRNA vaccine.

Together, we will review the principles of how our immune system wards off the threat of viruses and other infectious agents, establishes immunological memory and how these afford a platform for the development and implementation of targeted protective vaccines.

Once we’ve established a clearer understanding of how science has been applied to produce effective diagnostic tests, better medicines, and protective vaccines, we will direct our attention to the family of the most recent threat to public health: SARS Coronavirus 2. Surprisingly, it turns out that Coronaviruses are not new - some even cause the common cold. Through a systematic analysis of coronaviruses in humans, livestock and pets we will better understand how these viruses function and how effective, or not, are the vaccines raised against them.

This course was produced at Tel Aviv University - Innovation in Teaching and Learning.