Malaria/vaccine development: injection of hope
Malaria exacts a horrific toll. The mosquito-borne disease kills a child almost every minute. But scientists have now made big advances in developing vaccines capable of controlling the disease. The scale of their achievement can be gauged by how long it took to succeed.
UK pharma giant GSK has been developing a vaccine since 1984. This week, its pioneering Mosquirix jab crossed a crucial milestone when the World Health Organization endorsed its safety and efficacy with “prequalification” status. That paves the way for UN agencies to roll it out.
Separately, researchers at Oxford university this week published encouraging trial data on its novel malaria vaccine. The team, which previously developed a Covid-19 jab with AstraZeneca, showed the effectiveness of a booster shot in a study involving more than 400 west African children.
This story originally appeared on: Financial Times - Author:Faqs of Insurances
