A single-dose vaccine of chikungunya was found to be safe and capable of producing a strong immune response against the disease, claimed a preventive publication in The Lancet Journal. The work on this vaccine is in the first phase 3 trial. The researchers, however, haven’t been able to investigate if this VLA1553 vaccine, developed by French biotech company Valneva, could actually protect against the subsequent disease since the study was not conducted in places where chikungunya is endemic.
Chikungunya is caused by an infected mosquito bite. CHIKV is an RNA virus in the alphavirus genus of the family Togaviridae. The name of the virus is derived from a word in the Kimakonde language, meaning “to become contorted”.
ALSO READ |
This virus causes fever in patients usually four to eight days after they have been stung by an infected mosquito. This disease shows symptoms that include mild to severe headaches, fatigue, nausea, and muscle or joint pain that usually lasts for a few days. Elderly people and infants are most at risk; further complication and death is also a probability.
Despite the chikungunya virus being endemic in some regions of Africa, Asia, and the Americas, there is no approved vaccine to prevent the disease caused by CHIKV infection.
The recent study was conducted on 4,115 healthy adults across 43 study sites in the US. For the study, 3,082 people were given one dose of the vaccine in the arm whereas the remaining 1033 were given a placebo. All participants were kept in safety analysis but the immune response was only tested in a subgroup of 362 that consisted of 266 with the vaccine and 96 with the placebo.
The vaccine VLA1553 was tolerable by different age groups, with most adverse events being mild or moderate. For the participants who were given the vaccine, the most common adverse events were headaches, fatigue, muscle pain, and pain at the injection site. Whereas, after six months, there were more adverse events recorded for those participants given the vaccine than those with a placebo.
“This could be the first chikungunya vaccine available for people living in endemic regions, as well as for travellers to endemic areas or areas at risk for an upcoming outbreak,” said study lead author Martina Schneider, the Clinical Strategy Manager at Valneva.
(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)
First Published: Jun 13, 2023 5:48 PM IST
Check out our in-depth Market Coverage, Business News & get real-time Stock Market Updates on CNBC-TV18. Also, Watch our channels CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar Live on-the-go!
BJP is planning to ban RSS, says Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray
May 18, 2024 8:01 PM
Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Complete list of Congress candidates
May 18, 2024 4:08 PM
Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Check full list of AAP candidates and constituencies
May 18, 2024 12:59 PM
PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi election rallies in Delhi today: Here are the routes to avoid
May 18, 2024 11:28 AM