Research Roundup: Urgent need for new dengue vaccines, Expanded use for RSV vaccine, New TB testing method
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The push for a better dengue vaccine grows more urgent The New York Times?(4/11)
As the dengue outbreak in Latin America has continued to grow and the threat of dengue continues to rise globally due to climate change, better and cheaper vaccines are on the horizon but are unlikely to be available soon enough to address the current crises. Currently approved vaccines for dengue include one expensive two-shot regimen and one that can only be given to people who have already been infected. A new, single-dose vaccine designed to target all four strains of the dengue virus, which was created by the US National Institutes of Health and licensed for development by the Brazilian Instituto Butantan, provided strong protection in a Phase 3 trial. The institute plans to submit the vaccine to Brazil’s regulatory agency for approval within the next few months, and if approved, the institute could start producing tens of million doses next year. Merck also licensed the vaccine technology and is developing a related vaccine for the rest of the world but has yet to test it in a clinical trial. In the meantime, the Brazilian government bought global supply of Takeda’s Qdenga vaccine, which, at a steep per-dose price, will provide some protection during the current outbreak. Takeda’s vaccine has also been licensed to an Indian generic drugmaker, but a slow start-up process means that is unlikely to be available before 2030.
Pfizer’s RSV vaccine shows potential to protect high-risk adults ages 18-59, widening possible use CNBC (4/9)
Pfizer recently announced that its RSV vaccine demonstrated the potential to protect adults between 18 and 50 at high risk of severe illness in a late-stage clinical trial, offering the promise of a tool to protect a far broader population against the virus that not only causes thousands of hospitalizations and deaths among older Americans and hundreds among infants every year but also can also cause severe illness in younger adults with weakened immune systems or underlying chronic conditions. Abrysvo is currently approved in the United States and elsewhere for adults 60 and older and expectant mothers. Pfizer announced plans to submit the final results from the trial for expanded approval of Abrysvo, although a timeline for submission has not yet been disclosed. Last fall, GSK released late-stage trial data demonstrating that its RSV vaccine could protect adults between 50 and 59 years old, and the US Food and Drug Administration is expected to make its decision on that vaccine in June.
A research team from the Centre for Clinical Microbiology at University College London has developed a new method for testing tuberculosis (TB) that would allow lower-resourced laboratories in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to process samples safely, with the method primarily aimed at use for monitoring drug treatment response and clinical trials. The World Health Organization recommends monthly treatment monitoring with sputum culture to ensure patients are adhering to treatment to reduce the emergence of multidrug- or rifampicin-resistant TB, but monitoring with culture is often unavailable or incredibly slow in LMICs. The new method cuts out the need for a culture; uses common instrumentation available in most laboratories, even in LMICS; does not have high energy requirements; and takes only three or four hours to return a result. The method is already being used in clinical studies.
NEWS FROM GHTC
In world first, Nigeria introduces new 5-in-1 vaccine against meningitis World Health Organization news release (4/12), features PATH
What would shifting to a single-dose HPV vaccine mean for health and access? Health Affairs?(4/10), features PATH
CEPI talks the need for speed when it comes to equitable vaccine access BioProcess International?(4/9), features the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE WEEK
High risk of animal-to-human diseases developing in some China fur farms, animal protection group says Reuters?(4/15)
Opinion: African-led clinical research needs pharma buy-in SciDevNet?(4/15)
Researchers call for a revamped fungal priority list to combat regional disease burdens NewsMedical?(4/11)
领英推荐
YS Biopharma's rabies vaccine bests approved competitor in interim phase 3 readout Fierce Biotech?(4/9)
FDA approves expanded indication for Dovato to include adolescent patients with HIV PharmExec.com (4/8)
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UPCOMING EVENTS
April 23 Webinar on early results from HIV prevention study Virtual
May 27 25th anniversary event: "Diverse, equitable and inclusive innovation for a more secure, malaria-free world" Geneva, Switzerland
June 2 2024 Blue Knight Symposium San Diego, California
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