I am an Associate Professor and Principal Investigator at the Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. In my laboratory we investigate host-pathogen interactions during pneumococcal infections of the Central Nervous System (CNS). The major burden of pneumococcal infections of the CNS and pneumococcal meningitis are the neurological dysfunctions (sequelae) experienced by 50% of the survivors due to a neuronal damage and cell death caused by the infection. Damaged and dead neurons cannot be either repaired or replaced in most of the cases. Our research has two main objectives: 1) Understanding the molecular mechanisms regulating neuronal damage caused by bacterial interaction and establish the blockade of pneumococcal-neuron interaction as new therapeutic approach to protect neurons and prevent neurological sequelae, 2) Identifying the molecules on pneumococci that trigger the phagocytosis process by microglia, the immune sentinels of the brain, and ultimately use these molecules as immuno-stimulatory agents to enhance the phagocytic capacity of microglia for an efficient elimination of the pathogens and providing protection for neurons.

Doctor Patricia Izurieta holds a degree in medicine from Quito University of Ecuador and a Masters and Ph.D degree in pharmacology from the University of Brussels, Belgium. She has more than 20 years’ experience in vaccine development and participated in the successful development, launch and implementation of various vaccines through her long career at GSK. She is author of various publications in high impact scientific journals, currently more on the field of Pneumococcal vaccines and pneumococcal disease burden. She is often a lecturer at international congresses sharing global scientific data on pneumococcal disease and vaccines. Currently she is leading the medical affairs team looking after the pneumococcal vaccines.