Monrovia, CA -- (SBWire) -- 08/17/2011 --Dr. Joseph Joyce, Director, Vaccine Research, Merck Research Laboratories, to deliver featured presentation at the “9th Annual Vaccines Discovery and Development: All Things Considered” conference, to be held on Nov. 7-8, 2011 in Boston, MA by GTC.

Dr. Joseph Joyce will discuss M-Protein-derived peptide conjugate vaccine candidates for Streptococcus pyogenes. Group A Streptococcus (GAS) infections caused by S. pyogenes represent a major health care burden in both developed and developing nations. Disease etiology ranges from mild pharyngitis to life-threatening manifestations such as necrotizing fasciitis and toxic shock syndrome. In a percentage of individuals, post-infection sequelae can lead to serious autoimmune manifestations such as rheumatic fever and glomerulonephritis. While first line antibiotics are generally effective, recurrent infection and limited accessibility to therapeutics in the developing world where incidence of severe disease is highest drive the need for prophylactic vaccine development.

Dr. Joseph Joyce joined Merck in 1989, working as a protein biochemist in the area of vaccine research. He holds post graduate degrees in Chemistry (M.S.) and Biochemistry (Ph.D.) from Lehigh University. During his early tenure at Merck, Joyce worked on several important vaccine programs including Recombivax® for hepatitis B, pneumococcal conjugate, and human papillomavirus (HPV). He played a key role in early development of Gardasil®, the first licensed HPV vaccine, establishing purification and characterization protocols for HPV virus-like particles produced in yeast, and studying interaction of these VLPs with mammalian cell surface receptors.

The 9th Vaccine Discovery and Development: All Things Considered conference annually brings together experts in vaccines from big and small pharmaceutical companies, academia, and government. The intimate setting of the conference enables networking and the opportunity to meet speakers and delegates. This year’s conference will appropriately take place in Boston, MA, the hub of research and development.

The purpose of the event is to generate dialogue and to introduce novel advances in the field of vaccines. It is part of a two-track meeting that will take place at the Omni Parker House. Delegates at this event will have a chance to meet the attendees of the concurrent 8th Anti-Infectives Partnering and Deal-Making conference.

The sessions for this conference are:
Vaccines for Infectious Diseases
Therapeutic Vaccines
Regulatory and Government Policy
New Technologies in Vaccine Development
Future Trends in Vaccine Discovery and New Vaccines

For more information, please visit http://www.gtcbio.com.