Maria Elena Bottazzi | Co-Director of Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development
Baylor College of Medicine

Maria Elena Bottazzi, PhD is an internationally recognized vaccinologist and global health leader advancing scalable vaccine innovations for neglected tropical diseases and emerging infections. She serves as Senior Associate Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and Co‑Director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development. Dr. Bottazzi has built end‑to‑end vaccine development pipelines that move technologies from discovery through clinical development using sustainable product development partnerships. Her work focuses on developing accessible, affordable vaccines for populations in low‑ and middle‑income countries, with an emphasis on platform technologies, manufacturability, and global deployment. She is a pioneer in equitable vaccine innovation and was part of the team that developed an open‑science COVID‑19 vaccine technology designed for global manufacturing without intellectual property barriers. Her work has contributed to advancing multiple vaccine candidates into clinical trials across diverse global settings. Elected to the U.S. National Academy of Medicine in 2024, Dr. Bottazzi is widely recognized for combining scientific innovation with policy, partnerships, and global access strategies. Her leadership exemplifies a model of vaccine development that integrates science, translation, and international collaboration to address some of the world’s most pressing infectious disease challenges.