Coronavirus Breaking News

The reliable and timely detection of poliovirus cases is a critical component of polio eradication programs wrote the U.S. CDC.

Since 1988, the number of polio cases caused by wild poliovirus (WPV) has declined by 99.9%, and eradication of WPV serotypes 2 and 3 has been certified.

On April 4, 2024, a new Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report confirmed only WPV1 continues to circulate, and transmission remains endemic in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

During 2022–2023, among 28 priority countries, 71.4% met national surveillance indicator targets, and the number of environmental surveillance sites increased.

However, the CDC says that maintaining high-quality surveillance is critical to increasing this rate and achieving the goal of global polio eradication.

To strengthen the fight against polio, health ministers from across the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region gathered in late March 2024 for the 10th meeting of the Regional Subcommittee on Polio Eradication and Outbreaks.

"One of my key priorities as your Regional Director is to strengthen our region's public health capacities so that you have all the tools not only to end the transmission of polio but also to ensure that polio can indeed never make a comeback," commented Dr. Hanan Balkhy in a media release.

Another component of polio eradication is vaccinations.

According to the CDC, two types of polio vaccines are in use in 2024.

While the inactivated (killed) polio vaccine is offered in clinics and pharmacies in the U.S., over 1 billion novel oral polio vaccinations have recently occurred.

The nOPV2 vaccine has been offered in more than 35 countries worldwide. 

The nOPV2 vaccine is being deployed under the WHO's pre-qualified Emergency Use Listing procedure, the first use for a polio vaccine.

Morris & Dickson today announced it became the first U.S. commercial distributor of the JYNNEOS® vaccine. This second-generation vaccine is U.S. FDA-approved to prevent mpox and smallpox disease.

On April 3, 2024, Morris & Dickson confirmed receiving the first U.S. shipment of JYNNEOS vaccines.

This vaccine must be safely stored at minus 20 degrees Celsius. Morris & Dickson's state-of-the-art distribution techniques feature this storage and transport capability.

"We are proud to be a key partner in expanding access to this first-to-market vaccine," says Layne Martin, CEO of Head of Specialty at Morris & Dickson, in a press release. 

"JYNNEOS meets a critical public health need and helps ensure equitable access to healthcare, which in turn helps significantly prevent the spread of mpox to at-risk populations."

As of April 2024, U.S. healthcare providers in the U.S. can order JYNNEOS to make it available for at-risk individuals at local pharmacies and physician offices in addition to public health clinics.

In 2023, the U.S. CDC confirmed that the effectiveness of the JYNNEOS vaccine against mpox ranges from 36% to 75% after one dose and 66% to 89% for two doses. As of 2024, third-dose boosters have not been clinically approved.

Founded in 1841, Morris & Dickson is now approaching $6 billion in annual sales, making it the industry's largest independently owned full-line distributor. Independent pharmacies in the U.S. rely on Morris & Dickson for quick responses and straightforward business practices.

Since the global mpox outbreak began in early May 2022, more than 32,000 cases have been reported in the U.S., representing a third of all cases reported worldwide.

Bavarian Nordic's JYNNEOS (MVA-BN®, IMVAMUNE®) vaccine is available in various countries.

An advanced vaccine candidate for the Lassa fever virus (LASV) today announced the start of its second phase of clinical trials.

This is a significant development, as no approved vaccines for LASV are currently available.

The trial sponsor, International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), a nonprofit scientific research organization, confirmed in a press release on April 4, 2024, that participants at HJF Medical Research International in Nigeria had been vaccinated in the first Phase 2 clinical trial of the vaccine candidate rVSV∆G-LASV-GPC.

The IAVI C105/PREVAIL15 study began on March 4, 2024, and is expected to enroll over 600 people in Nigeria, Ghana, and Liberia, with results expected in 2025.

As of March 2024, 27 states in Nigeria have reported at least one confirmed case of LASV.

The vaccine has been developing since 2018 and has been supported and funded by CEPI and the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership.

According to IAVI, rVSV∆G-LASV-GPC uses the same recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus vector platform as ERVEBO®, the single-dose Zaire ebolavirus vaccine licensed in North America, Europe, and various African countries.

“Continued outbreaks of Lassa fever and the emergence of Ebola Sudan in Uganda both underscore the need to have vaccines for known disease threats available for evaluation and use during outbreak situations – the overarching goal of IAVI’s emerging infectious disease program,” stated Swati Gupta, DrPH, MPH, vice president and head of emerging infectious diseases and epidemiology, IAVI.

The virus causes acute viral hemorrhagic illness and results in approximately 5,000 deaths and 300,000 illnesses in West Africa each year.

Furthermore, LASV has been included in the World Health Organization's R&D Blueprint of priority pathogens for which accelerated research and development and countermeasures are urgently needed.

In addition to rVSV∆G-LASV-GPC, several other LASV vaccine candidates are conducting clinical research in 2024.

As polio eradication campaigns are highlighted worldwide, a new collaboration intends to support India's effort to create a polio-free country.

Bharat Biotech, the largest manufacturer of oral polio vaccines, and Bilthoven Biologicals B.V. (BBio), a wholly owned subsidiary of Serum Institute of India Private Limited, announced a collaboration to strengthen the production and supply security of Oral Polio Vaccines (OPV) further.

Through this collaboration, confirmed on April 2, 2024, BBIL and BBio will jointly obtain the regulatory approvals and licenses required to commercially manufacture OPVs in India for global supplies from drug substances manufactured in the Netherlands at BBio.

Dr. Krishna Ella, Executive Chairman of Bharat Biotech, commented in a press release, "Oral polio vaccines have been an integral part of the Govt of India's Universal Immunisation Program for several decades, with Bharat Biotech being one of the largest suppliers to immunization programs across the world."

"This collaboration between BBIL and BBio exemplifies cooperation between vaccine companies, ensuring a secure supply of oral polio vaccines and fortifies the nation's mission to eradicate polio."

According to the U.S. CDC's Global Polio Travel Health Advisory issued in January 2024, about 31 international destinations are at risk for circulating poliovirus.

The CDC says that before visiting any at-risk destination, adults who have previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series may receive a single, lifetime booster dose of the polio vaccine.

In the U.S., polio vaccines are offered at clinics and community pharmacies.

As the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, upcoming vaccination campaigns will focus on consumer choice in selecting updated vaccines. As of April 2, 2024, the World Health Organization has Listed 13 COVID-19 vaccines.

On April 3, Novavax, Inc. will host a panel discussion, "The Future of COVID-19 Vaccinations," featuring Dr. Robert Walker, the Chief Medical Officer.

This innovative discussion will explore the advantages of creating broadly protective antigens or combination vaccines.

It will showcase continued progress on data from Novavax's updated protein-based COVID-19 vaccine (NVX-CoV2601) with its Matrix-M™ adjuvant and provide an overview of its influenza and COVID-19-Influenza Combination (CIC) vaccine candidates at the World Vaccine Congress 2024 (WVC) in Washington, DC.

New data from Novavax's ongoing research on its updated XBB.1.5 COVID-19 vaccine in participants who previously received an mRNA vaccine showed robust neutralizing antibody titers for the XBB.1.5 subvariant and for the currently circulating JN.1 subvariant. Data also showed that the vaccine's safety and reactogenicity profile was consistent with its prototype vaccine (NVX-CoV2373).

Additionally, Novavax will discuss its influenza and CIC vaccine candidates, including a recap of data to date and the timeline for the Phase 3 trial, which is anticipated to start in the second half of 2024.

COVID-19 vaccines and flu shots are offered at most pharmacies in the U.S.

Furthermore, adults without health insurance and adults whose health insurance does not cover all COVID-19 vaccine costs at an in-network provider can get updated COVID-19 vaccines at a pharmacy for free through the U.S. CDC's Bridge Access Program.

According to the World Health Organization, Dengue is endemic in over 100 countries in 2024, including the Republic of Singapore.  

Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) today announced it launched the National Dengue Prevention Campaign 2024 ahead of the traditional peak dengue season, which is from May to October.

Over 5,000 dengue cases were reported in the first quarter of 2024, more than double the 2,360 cases reported in the same period in 2023.

As of March 2024, seven dengue deaths due to local dengue infection have been notified in Singapore.

On March 31, 2024, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and the Environment, Mr. Baey Yam Keng, urged collective responsibility and action to fight dengue amidst the ongoing dengue situation.

The Aedes aegypti mosquito population has also remained high, with the number of breeding habitats found at residential premises in January 2024 double that of January 2023.

Our population in Singapore also has low immunity to all four Dengue virus serotypes. The continued presence of all these dengue risk factors may lead to a surge in dengue cases in the coming months if insufficient action is taken, commented Mr. Baey Yam Keng.

NEA will also continue to combat dengue with Project Wolbachia. Regular genetically modified mosquito releases could help mitigate dengue outbreaks, complementing local community efforts to prevent mosquito breeding.

To alert international travelers, the U.S. CDC issued a Travel Health Notice regarding dengue outbreaks in the Asia/Pacific Islands (February 9, 2024). 

Dengue is a mosquito-transmitted disease that can be prevented with a U.S. FDA vaccine.

Although human infections with Avian Influenza HPAI A(H5N1) virus (Bird Flu) are rare, having unprotected exposure to any infected animal poses a risk of infection. 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued guidelines on March 29, 2024, to prevent exposure to this virus.

These guidelines include using personal protective equipment, testing, antiviral treatment, patient investigations, monitoring exposed individuals, and administering antiviral chemoprophylaxis to those who have been exposed.

Currently, the CDC considers the human health risk to people in the U.S. from Bird Flu viruses to be low.

These CDC recommendations are based on information available as of March 2024 and will be updated as necessary when new information becomes available.

Influenza A viruses infect birds' respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts, causing them to shed the virus in their saliva, mucous, and feces. Human infections with avian influenza A viruses can happen when enough virus gets into a person's eyes, nose, or mouth or is inhaled.

Illnesses in people from HPAI A(H5N1) virus infections have ranged from mild to severe disease, resulting in death, says the CDC.

As of March 31, 2024, the U.S. FDA approved bird flu vaccines for people, such as CSL Seqirus Inc. Audenz™ (aH5N1c), but they are not commercially available.

Additionally, the U.S. government has previously invested in developing various avian influenza vaccines and candidates.