The Science of Vaccines

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Course Objectives
  1. Explain the historical development and scientific foundations of vaccines
  2. Identify different types of vaccines and their mechanisms of action
  3. Describe essential safety protocols for phlebotomists and healthcare professionals in vaccine administration contexts

Course Content
Course Creator: Nichelle Volker RMA
Total CE Hours: 1.5 Credit Hours 
Pace Course #: 586-2121-25
Key Terms:
  • Antigen
  • Antibody
  • Immunity
  • Herd Immunity
  • Attenuated Vaccine
  • Inactivated Vaccine
  • mRNA Vaccine

Outline:
  • Evolution of Vaccines
    • Early Vaccination: From Variolation to Vaccination1
      • Variolation
        • Origin
        • Method
        • Purpose
      • Vaccination
        • Innovation
        • Method
        • Benefits
        • Impact
    • Birth of Modern Vaccines
      • Edward Jenner’s Smallpox
      • Louis Pasteur
      • Development of Polio vaccine
      • 2005 mRNA vaccine breakthrough
    • Historical Vaccine Techniques 
      • Variolation
      • Attenuation
      • Inactivation
  • Modern Vaccination
    • Types of Vaccines
      • Live attenuated
      • Inactivated
      • Subunit, recombinant
      • Toxoid
      • mRNA
    • Vaccines at work in the Human Body
      • Fundamental Concepts
      • Basic vaccine concepts
      • Key immune system components involved
      • Immune system parts
        • Innate
        • Adaptive
      • Vaccine Mechanisms
        • Vaccine introduced
        • Antigen recognized
        • T and B cell activation
        • Immune pathways
        • Recap
        • Fun Facts
  • Vaccine Efficiency and Safety
    • Efficiency definition
    • Factors that influence efficiency 
    • Safety monitoring and testing
    • Clinical trials
      • Phase 1
      • Phase 2
      • Phase 3
      • Review/Approval
        • Continuing safety monitoring 
          • VAERS
          • VSD
          • FDA, CDC, WHO
  • Real-world Examples
    • Hepatitis B and Healthcare workers
    • Yellow Fever and international travelers
    • MMR and school vaccination
    • COVID-19 vaccine roll out and booster strategy
    • Titer testing and Immunity verification
    • Early Vaccine breakthrough- Smallpox
  • Phlebotomy in Vaccine Science
    • Assist scientists and healthcare providers in
      • Immunity measurements post vaccination
      • Antibody titers
    • Support clinical trials
      • Pre-vaccination baselines
      • Post-vaccination and long term immunity testing
    • Vaccine Science Link
      • Lab testing for immune markers
      • Assessing durability of response
      • Booster needs
    • Real-world examples
      • COVID-19 vaccine trials
      • Hepatitis. B vaccination
    • Patient Histories
    • Phlebotomy Best Practices
  • Future Directions in Vaccine Research
    • Universal Vaccine
    • Cancer Vaccines
    • Innovative Vaccine Delivery Systems
      • Oral
      • Needle-free patch
  • Recap/Key Takeaway
 
References: 
  1. (2020, May 12). Variolation vs. Vaccination: 18th Century Developments in Smallpox Inoculation. The BeeHive. Retrieved March 17, 2025, from https://www.masshist.org/beehiveblog/2020/05/variolation-vs-vaccination-18th-century-developments-in-smallpox-inoculation/
  2. (2024, September 6). Edward Jenner: The Pioneer of Vaccination and His Enduring Legacy in Modern Medicine. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved March 17, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11456306/
  3. (n.d.). Our Histpory. The Institut Pasteur. Retrieved April 13, 2025, from https://www.pasteur.fr/en/institut-pasteur/history
  4. (n.d.). History of The Polio Vaccine. WHO. Retrieved April 13, 2025, from https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/history-of-vaccination/history-of-polio-vaccination
  5. (n.d.). Global Polio Eradication. CDC. Retrieved April 13, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/global-polio-vaccination/about/
  6. (2024, March 22). Principles of Vaccination. CDC. Retrieved March 16, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/pinkbook/hcp/table-of-contents/chapter-1-principles-of-vaccination.html
  7. (2023, October 2). Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2023. The Nobel Prize. Retrieved April 13, 2025, from https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2023/press-release/
  8.  (n.d.). Attenuated Vaccine. Science Direct. Retrieved March 20, 2025, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/immunology-and-microbiology/attenuated-vaccine
  9.  (2019, July 1). Vaccine Types. National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Disease. Retrieved March 16, 2025, from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/research/vaccine-types
  10.  (2022, December 22). Vaccine Types. US Department of Health & Human Services. Retrieved March 16, 2025, from https://www.hhs.gov/immunization/basics/types/
  11. (2024, September 3). COVID-19 Vaccine Basics. CDC. Retrieved March 16, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/covid/vaccines/how-they-work.html
  12. (n.d.). How do vaccines work? WHO. Retrieved April 13, 2025, from https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/how-do-vaccines-work
  13. Rabadi T, Brady MF. Tetanus Toxoid. [Updated 2023 May 1]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/books/NBK557415/
  14. Overview of the Immune System. National Institute Of Allergy & Infectious Disease. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/research/immune-system-overview
  15. Leong, K. Y., Tham, S. K., & Poh, C. L. (2025). Revolutionizing immunization: a comprehensive review of mRNA vaccine technology and applications. Virology journal, 22(1), 71. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12985-025-02645-6

  1. (n.d.). Vaccines and immunization: What is vaccination. World Health Organization. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/vaccines-and-immunization-what-is-vaccination
  2. InformedHealth.org [Internet]. Cologne, Germany: Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG); 2006-. In brief: The innate and adaptive immune systems. [Updated 2023 Aug 14]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279396/
  3. Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J, et al. Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition. New York: Garland Science; 2002. T Cells and MHC Proteins. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26926/
  4. Vaccines. John Hopkins Medicine. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/vaccines
  5. How Vaccines Work. CDC. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/basics/explaining-how-vaccines-work.html
  6. How does the immune system work. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279364/
  7. (2019, March 13). Factors That Influence the Immune Response to Vaccination. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6431125
  8. (2025, March 10). Vaccine efficacy, effectiveness and protection. World Health Organization. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/vaccine-efficacy-effectiveness-and-protection
  9. How Vaccines are Developed and Approved for Use. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved April 22, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/basics/how-developed-approved.html
  10. Vaccine Development – 101. FDA - USA Food & Drug. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/development-approval-process-cber/vaccine-development-101
  11. (2024, August 9). Developing Safe and Effective Vaccines. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines-children/about/developing-safe-effective-vaccines.html
  12. (2024, August 7). About the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety-systems/vaers
  13. (2025, January 31). About the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD). CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety-systems/vsd
  14. The Global Vaccine Safety Initiative (GVSI). WHO World Health Organization. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.who.int/initiatives/the-global-vaccine-safety-initiative
  15. Hepatitis B Vaccine Safety. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety/vaccines/hepatitis-b.html
  16. Yellow Fever Vaccine. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-fever/vaccine/index.html
  17. Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) Vaccine Safety. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety/vaccines/mmr.html
  18. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccine Safety. CDC. Retrieved April 24, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safety/vaccines/covid-19.html
  19. The Importance Of Phlebotomy In Covid-19 Vaccine Research. NEEDLE. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://www.needle.tube/resources-articles/the-importance-of-phlebotomy-in-covid-19-vaccine-research
  20. Role of Phlebotomists in Immunization Process: Opportunities and Challenges. Needle Tube. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://www.needle.tube/resources-1/role-of-phlebotomists-in-immunization-process-opportunities-and-challenges
  21. Implementing best phlebotomy practices. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK138655/
  22. Research in Context: Progress toward universal vaccines. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/research-context-progress-toward-universal-vaccines
  23. Mechanisms of viral mutation. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5075021/
  24. Cancer vaccines: Current status and future directions. Journal of Hematology & Oncology. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://jhoonline.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13045-025-01670-w
  25. Impact of the HPV Vaccine. CDC. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/vaccination-impact/index.html
  26. Nanocarriers-Assisted Needle-Free Vaccine Delivery Through Oral and Intranasal Transmucosal Routes: A Novel Therapeutic Conduit. National Library Of Medicine. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8787087/

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