The CCHFVACIM project is an ambitious collaborative effort aimed at developing both prophylactic and therapeutic effective countermeasures against Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV), one of the most threatening vector-borne pathogens, widely distributed, including in the European continent. Deep structural biology studies on viral glycoproteins and investigation of the immunogenicity of the viral antigens will be combined with optimisation of an mRNA vaccine candidate against the virus and characterisation of the resulting protective immunity, as well as with the development of immunotherapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) based on CCHFVs antigenic targets. To achieve the overarching goals, the CCHFVACIM project will build on the success of previous projects such as CCHFever (FP7), CCHFVaccine (H2020) and go the extra mile by initiating a unique One-Health platform strategy to address different aspects of this severe public health threat. On one hand, the project will use several advanced animal models (mice, sheep, and non-human primate) to assess and compare the efficacy of mRNA vaccine candidates, mAbs and therapeutic mRNA; on the other hand, it will establish a biobank from CCHF patients to build up a pipeline for the production of mAbs against CCHFV from their B cells. Importantly, the project will also contribute to capacity building of European infrastructures, with the establishment of a platform on mRNA-based vaccine at one of the partner institutions. Ultimately, CCHFVACIM will permit to develop a road map to bring the most efficacious vaccine candidates and immunotherapy tools to clinical trial Phase I in humans. The project results will be widely disseminated among the scientific community, public health authorities, non-governmental organisations, outbreak management teams, and hospitals, with the final scope of both contributing to contain the burden of CCHF disease and increasing preparedness to new outbreaks.

Natural epidemics and outbreaks of emerging viral epidemics are growing problems internationally. The general aim of the CCHFVaccine project is to develop and deliver a vaccine, which can significantly increase our capacity to control the situation of Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) disease on a global basis. The proposed work program on CCHF virus aims to build a multidisciplinary research network, able to deliver vaccine candidates, methods and procedures eligible for clinical trials, with a special focus on prevention. Thanks to the background, unique facilities and tools available among the consortium participants, CCHFVaccine will deliver tools for countering the threat of this infection in Europe and endemic areas of the world. This work program will attempt to fill gaps in CCHFV virus research on immunology and vaccinology. To achieve this overall aim, an intensive work plan will be put in place with the following specific objectives: i) to produce vaccine candidates, ii) to bring several unique animal models into front line vaccine research, iii) to validate and bring the most promising vaccine candidates to clinical trials, iv) to ensure that an immune mediated protection is adequately understood, v) to perform clinical trials at Phase I and ensure a strategy for the effective deployment and utilization in resource-poor countries, and vi) to link this project to public health bodies, NGOs and vaccine companies. The proposed CCHFVaccine project will succeed in bringing together selected competitive advantages such as: operating capacity with appropriate facilities (state-of-the-art BSL-4s) and the only animal BSL-4 -with capacity to challenge domestic animals in Europe, highly experienced researchers in the development and evaluation of vaccine candidates, authorities and entities of human and animal health, clinical samples from endemic countries, and an international network proven to be functional by the previous EU-funded CCHFever and EDENext.