Vaccine News

According to recent media reports, global private equity firms are reportedly preparing bids of about $1 billion for Bharat Serums and Vaccines (BSV).

On April 6, 2024, Manufacturing Today India reported that US-based Advent International acquired BSV in 2019 and is looking to sell the company.

Mumbai-based BSV is best known for its specialized products in women’s health, critical care, IUI-IVF, hormones, antibodies, and fungal infections. In FY 2023, its revenues were Rs 1,435 crore. 

The U.S. government confirmed today that the ongoing measles outbreak in the United States is rapidly increasing.

As of April 5, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a total of 113 measles cases had been confirmed by 18 jurisdictions: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York City, New York State, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington.

Seven outbreaks (defined as three or more related cases) were reported in 2024, and 73% are outbreak-associated.

For example, in Illinois, Chicago has reported about 58 measles cases over the past weeks.

About 58% of measles cases require hospitalization.

For comparison, in 2023, 58 measles cases were reported by 20 jurisdictions, with four outbreaks.

Internationally, the CDC listed the top ten international measles outbreaks as of March 12, 2024, led by Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Yemen, and India.

Furthermore, the United Kingdom's multi-month measles outbreak is accelerating in April 2024.

And to alert international travelers, the U.S. CDC republished a Travel Health Notice in late March 2024, identifying measles outbreaks in 49 countries.

The CDC says measles is a vaccine-preventable disease.

Various measles vaccines are offered at clinics and pharmacies in the U.S.

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.