Rino Rappuoli is Chief Scientist and Head External R&D at GSK Vaccines, based in Siena, Italy, and Professor at Imperial College and University of Siena. Prior positions: head of Vaccine R&D at Novartis, CSO of Chiron Corporation, and head for R&D at Sclavo.

He earned his PhD in biological sciences at the University of Siena, Italy, and was visiting scientist at Rockefeller University and Harvard Medical School. He is elected member of US National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), and the Royal Society of London. Awards received: Gold Medal by the Italian President, Albert B Sabin Gold Medal, Canada Gairdner International Award, and European Inventor Award for Lifetime Achievement. He was nominated third most influential person worldwide in the field of vaccines (Terrapin). He has published more than 765 works in peer-reviewed journals. He introduced novel scientific concepts: genetic detoxification; cellular microbiology; reverse vaccinology; pangenome. Developed licensed vaccines: acellular pertussis containing a nontoxic mutant of pertussis toxin; the first conjugate vaccine against meningococcus C; MF59, the first vaccine adjuvant after aluminium salts; meningococcus B; CRM 197 that is used as carrier in many conjugate vaccines.

Dr. Rappuoli is among the world scientific leaders dedicated to the sustainability of global health.

Mariagrazia Pizza received her degree in chemistry and Pharmaceutical technologies at the University of Naples, Italy. Following a period at the EMBO laboratories in Heidelberg, Germany, Mariagrazia moved to Siena, Italy, where she has led many bacterial projects. She has contributed to the discovery of a pertussis vaccine based on a genetically detoxified toxin, shown to be able to protect children from disease and to the discovery of new vaccine antigens by genome mining (reverse vaccinology), which are the basis of a new MenB vaccine now licensed in more than 38 countries worldwide. Mariagrazia is currently Senior Scientific Director for Bacterial Vaccines at GSK Vaccines, and Head of Preclinical at GVGH, the GSK Vaccine Institute for Global Health. She has received many scientific awards and is elected member of EMBO, of the European Academy of Microbiology and Academia Euopaea, Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, and Vice President of IUMS (International Unit of Microbiology Societies). Mariagrazia is also Honorary Visiting Professor at the Imperial College, UK. She has over 200 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and is co-inventor of many patents.

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