European Vaccine Initiative: lessons from developing malaria vaccines.

For over 10 years, the European Vaccine Initiative (EVI; European Malaria Vaccine Initiative until 2009) has contributed to the development of 24 malaria candidate vaccine antigens with 13 vaccine candidates being advanced into Phase I clinical trials, two of which have been transitioned for further clinical development in sub-Saharan Africa. Since its inception the EVI organization has operated as a funding agency, but with a clear service-oriented strategy. The scientific successes and difficulties encountered during these years and how these efforts have led to standardization and harmonization in vaccine development through large-scale European consortia are discussed. In the future, the EVI will remain instrumental in the pharmaceutical and clinical development of vaccines against 'diseases of poverty' with a continued focus on malaria. EVI will continue to focus on funding and managing preclinical evaluation up to Phase I/II clinical trials and strengthening the vaccine-development infrastructure in Europe, albeit with a global orientation.

European Malaria Vaccine Initiative: portfolio and perspectives for the future.

Over the past ten years, EMVI has continually strived to maintain its main goal of accelerating the development of candidate malaria vaccines by facilitating the translational gap between promising experimental malaria vaccines and subsequent clinical trials in Europe and in Africa. To date, EMVI has funded approximately ten vaccine formulations (antigen-adjuvant combination) by developing GMP materials and sponsoring subsequent human clinical trials. In recent years EMVI's role has expanded into harmonization activities relevant to malaria vaccine development as well as making contributions to global coordination efforts in the field of malaria vaccine research and development (R&D). In the next five years, EMVI will be coordinating the European Network of Vaccine Research and Development, an European Commission supported action implementing a vaccine development infrastructure for Europe. By stimulating collaboration, cooperation, networking and joint integrated activities across various fields of research and diseases, and by facilitating the federation of research infrastructures, EMVI is acting today as a catalyst for tomorrow's vaccines.