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Prof. dr. Cécile A.C.M. van Els

Centre for Infectious Disease Control, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).

Infectious Diseases & Immunology, Department of Biomolecular Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University.

Cécile van Els is an immunologist and an expert in vaccinology. She aims to advance infectious disease control and One Health strategies by understanding protective B- and T-cell mechanisms against a variety of pathogens and by unravelling how and why effectiveness of specific immunity to certain infectious diseases may fail. Her expertise encompasses correlates of protection for HIV, measles virus, respiratory syncytial virus, influenza virus, mumps virus, mycobacteria, meningococci, pneumococci, B. pertussis and SARS-CoV-2. It is her ambition to fuel vaccinology innovation by building bridges between teams, topics, disciplines and institutions and by helping (young) scientists’ careers.

5 recent publications related to B-cells and antibodies

  1. van den Broek B, van Els CACM, Kuipers B, van Aerde K, Henriet SS, de Groot R, de Jonge MI, Langereis JD, van der Flier M. Multi-component meningococcal serogroup B (MenB)-4C vaccine induces effective opsonophagocytic killing in children with a complement deficiency. Clin Exp Immunol. 2019 Dec;198(3):381-389. doi: 10.1111/cei.13368. Epub 2019 Oct 1. PMID: 31487400; PMCID: PMC6857189.
  2. Hovingh ES, Kuipers B, Bonačić Marinović AA, Hamstra HJ, Hijdra D, Gras LM, van Twillert I, Jongerius I., van Els CACM, and Pinelli E. Detection of opsonizing antibodies directed against a recently circulating Bordetella pertussis strain in paired plasma samples from symptomatic and recovered pertussis patients. Scientific Reports 2018 Aug 13;8(1):12039. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-30558-8.
  3. van Twillert I, Bonačić Marinović A, Kuipers B, van Gaans-van den Brink JAM, Sanders EAM, van Els CACM. Impact of age and vaccination history on long-term serological responses after symptomatic B. pertussis infection, a high dimensional data analysis. Sci Rep. 2017 Jan 16;7:40328. doi: 10.1038/srep40328. PubMed PMID: 28091579
  4. Kaaijk P, Gouma S, Hulscher HI, Han WG, Kleijne DE, van Binnendijk RS, van Els CA. Dynamics of the serologic response in vaccinated and unvaccinated mumps cases during an epidemic. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2015;11(7):1754-61. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2015.1040967.
  5. van Westen E, Wijmenga-Monsuur AJ, van Dijken HH, van Gaans-van den Brink JA, Kuipers B, Knol MJ, Berbers GA, Sanders EA, Rots NY, van Els CA. Differential B-cell memory around the 11-month booster in children vaccinated with a 10- or 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. Clin Infect Dis. 2015 Aug 1;61(3):342-9. doi: 10.1093/cid/civ274.

Currently supervision PhD research of

  1. Eleonora E. Lambert (cellular immunity to B. pertussis)
  2. Samantha He (cellular and humoral anti-protein immunity to S. pneumoniae)
  3. and of T2B Post-doc Maaike Braham (3D-matrix model for B cell growth and differentiation)

Supervision of PhD awarded candidates

  1. Luijkx T. 2006, Utrecht University. Immunogenicity of meningococcal PorA antigens in OMV vaccines. Doctoral Thesis
  2. Stenger R. 2010, Utrecht University. Induction and maintenance of Bordetella pertussis specific immune responses. Doctoral Thesis
  3. van Twillert I. 2017, Utrecht University. Cellular and humoral immunity after infection with B. pertussis. The role of age, antigen and vaccination history. Doctoral Thesis

Work package leader WP5 and member of WP2.

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