Hello.​
I am Dong-Gun Lee, director of the Vaccine-Bio Research Institute, the Catholic University of Korea.

For decades, a prevailing belief was that the epoch of acute infectious diseases had been transcended, directing our research and development efforts towards chronic diseases including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and dementia and oncological conditions. Nonetheless, the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 served as a poignant reminder of the persistent threat posed by infectious diseases. This reality echoes the foundational ethos of the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases established in 1961, which recognizes that ‘acute infectious diseases will continue to cause pandemics, and yet research allocated to these diseases remains incongruent with their significant impact’.

Given current dynamics, including global climatic changes and heightened globalization, infectious diseases are poised to amplify challenges through the emergence and propagation of novel infectious agents and a rise in multi-drug-resistant bacteria. The World Health Organization and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency have projected that pandemics will become a recurrent phenomenon and highlight that as we transition into a phase where infectious diseases become endemic, it is important to prepare and invest for the future.

At the Vaccine-Bio Research Institute of the Catholic University of Korea, we are committed to finding and developing biomarkers and vaccines to diagnose and treat infectious diseases amidst these evolving environments and conditions. Our goal is to identify unmet healthcare needs regarding prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, and to facilitate clinical applications of these discoveries in line with international standards.

First, we are actively engaged in bench-to-bedside translational research through a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional platform.

The institute has established an integrated platform that links the development of biomarkers and vaccines for infectious diseases to clinical research, in collaboration with the Department of Basic Medicine at the College of Medicine in the Catholic University of Korea. This platform leads basic research institutions and industrial partners in Korea, the International Vaccine Institute, and many other clinical practitioners in infectious disease, pediatrics, and laboratory medicine.

Second, we are conducting state-of-the-art clinical trials that utilize the network of the Catholic Medical Center, including Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital.

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine in Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital is renowned for Korea’s best clinical trial capabilities. The eight hospitals led by the Catholic Medical Center have received AAHRPP accreditation and function cohesively within the central medical center system. Furthermore, the Vaccine-Bio Research Institute is a MFDS-designated facility for clinical trial specimen analysis and is gearing up to assume a central role in the International Vaccine Institute. We are well-positioned to expedite clinical trials for developed biomarkers and vaccines by leveraging both the largest healthcare facility in the nation and a unified operational system for a central medical center.

The Vaccine-Bio Research Institute of the Catholic University of Korea seeks your support and attention as a leading research entity in Korea, integrating industry, academia, hospitals, and research in the field of infectious diseases. Thank you.

Director Dong-Gun Lee