Zika Breaking News

The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) reconfirmed on June 27, 2023, it is investigating a recent increase in mpox cases among Chicago residents. 

Between June 4 and June 22, 2023, there were six additional mpox cases reported.

The CDPH's dashboard indicates over the past three months, there have been 46 mpox cases and three related hospitalizations. And Chicago did not disclose the number of vaccine-breakthrough cases reported.

From a prevention perspective, 146 people were vaccinated in Chicago last week with the JYNNEOS® (MVA-BN) vaccine.

Since May 2022, 49,351 doses have been administered. 

Chicagions with mpox questions can contact the HIV/STI Resource Hub at 844-482-4040  or the CDPH Call Center at 312-746-4835.

Throughout Illinois, including CDPH's data, 1,488 mpox cases have been reported during the global outbreak.

As of June 28, 2023, the U.S. CDC reported 30,531 mpox cases and 43 related fatalities since May 2022.

While Bavarian Nordic's vaccine has been the primary mpox vaccine offered in the U.S., a Cincinnati-based firm Blue Water Biotech, Inc., announced on June 28, 2023, preliminary preclinical data supporting the use of its norovirus shell and protrusion virus-like particle platform to develop a novel mpox vaccine candidate.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C.) today announced the current C.D.C. Director adopted the 2023-2024 Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' (ACIP) recommendations on annual influenza (flu) vaccination for everyone six months and older in the U.S.

As of June 29, 2023, there are minor changes to the ACIP's flu shot recommendations, including, but not limited to, an acknowledgment of the updated flu vaccine composition for the 2023-2024 flu season.

And a change in the recommendations for vaccination of people with egg allergies.

Flu vaccination has many benefits. It has been shown to reduce the risk of getting sick with the flu and also to reduce the risk of more serious flu outcomes that can result in hospitalization or even death, says the CDC.

Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H.'s adoption of the ACIP recommendations makes them official C.D.C. policy. Providers should begin vaccinating patients according to C.D.C.'s recommended timing, which has not changed for the 2023-2023 influenza season in the U.S.

The C.D.C. says September and October are the best times for most people to get vaccinated.

Furthermore, flu vaccination in July and August is not recommended for most people, but there are several considerations for specific groups.

While influenza viruses are detected year-round, the exact timing and duration of flu seasons vary by country, says the World Health Organization (WHO). What happens in the Southern Hemisphere does not necessarily predict what will happen in the Northern Hemisphere, which includes the U.S.

The WHO recently published Influenza Update N° 448, which confirmed influenza detections remained low globally. Still, in the southern hemisphere, some countries reported variable changes in influenza detections in recent weeks, while detections in others seemed to have peaked as of June 26, 2023.

Additionally, Precision Vaccinations published an updated list of influenza vaccines and candidates conducting clinical trials.

The MedAfrica Times recently reported that the Republic of Brazil donated 80 thousand vaccines against HPV and yellow fever to Cabo Verde.

The Cape Verdean Ministry of Health announced on June 27, 2023, 50 thousand doses of HPV and 30 thousand doses of yellow fever arrived in Praia.

"The yellow fever vaccine is used to prevent yellow fever, a disease caused by an arbovirus. It is recommended for prevention in endemic areas or for travelers", said this article.

The U.S. CDC recently wrote that no (health) notices are currently in effect for Cape Verde.

However, the CDC suggests prospective visitors to Cape Verde speak with a healthcare provider regarding travel vaccinations, such as yellow fever and medicines.

Located 900 miles south of the Canary Islands and 350 miles from the African mainland, Cape Verde's nine inhabited islands offer vacationers many relaxing options.

Cabo Verde has witnessed significant economic progress since 1990, driven in large part by the rapid development of tourism (25% of GDP).

And remember to pack essential health supplies in case of travel delays, says the CDC.

While most of the media attention has been focused on the state of Florida's recent malaria outbreak (4) on its west coast, another mosquito-transmitted disease continues its multi-year impact on Florida's southeastern coast.

As of June 24, 2023, Florida Weekly Arbovirus Report revealed another 18 travel-associated dengue cases had been confirmed.

This data increased Florida's dengue outbreak to 100 cases in 2023, led by Miami-Dade (64) and Broward (8) countries.

These dengue-infected travelers primarily originated in Brazil and Cuba.

Furthermore, 2 cases of locally acquired dengue have been reported this year.

In 2022, 903 travel-associated and 68 locally-acquired dengue cases were reported in Florida.

To notify residents and visitors, the Florida Department of Health issued a statewide mosquito-borne illness advisory on June 26, 2023.

Furthermore, Florida continues to conduct statewide surveillance for mosquito-borne illnesses, including West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis, and chikungunya. 

The Department confirmed aerial and ground mosquito spraying continues in these areas to mitigate the risk of further virus transmission.

There are approved vaccines for both dengue and malaria, but access is limited in the U.S. 

As of June 28, 2023, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor the U.K. Foreign Office have issued travel advice when visiting Florida.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today republished an expanded global polio outbreak Travel Health Notice.

On June 26, 2023, the CDC identified thirty destinations with circulating poliovirus.

And, before travel to any destination listed, adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series may receive a single, lifetime booster dose of a polio vaccine.

In the U.S., the IPV vaccine has been offered since 2000. Oral polio vaccines are provided in various countries in 2023.

For example, the new nOPV2 vaccine has been administered over 620 million times in recent years.

The CDC says polio is a crippling and potentially deadly disease that affects the nervous system.

Because the virus that causes polio lives in the feces of an infected person, people infected with the disease can spread it to others when they do not wash their hands well after defecating.

People can also be infected if they drink water or eat food contaminated with infected feces.

Most people with polio do not feel sick. Some people have only minor symptoms, such as fever, tiredness, nausea, headache, nasal congestion, sore throat, cough, stiffness in the neck and back, and pain in the arms and legs.

In rare cases, polio infection causes permanent loss of muscle function. Polio can be fatal if the muscles used for breathing are paralyzed or if there is an infection of the brain, says the CDC.

IAVI announced today that the initial participants had been vaccinated with a Sudan virus (SUDV) vaccine candidate in a first-in-human Phase I clinical trial in the U.S.

As of June 27, 2023, the IAVI C108 IAVI-sponsored trial is funded by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).

IAVI C108 will occur at two U.S.-based clinical trial sites, where the vaccine candidate will be administered intramuscularly at three dosage levels. 

This is essential news since there are no SUDV vaccines available.

Furthermore, like the Zaire Ebolavirus (ZEBOV), SUDV is responsible for recurring viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks across sub-Saharan Africa.

In past Ebola outbreaks, the estimated case fatality ratios of SUDV disease have varied from 41% to 100%.

This study evaluates the safety and immunogenicity of an investigational SUDV vaccine candidate previously donated to IAVI by Merck. This investigational SUDV vaccine candidate was produced for IAVI from an existing investigational bulk drug substance previously manufactured by Merck.

IAVI is responsible for all aspects of the candidate’s future development, including demonstrating equivalence between this SUDV vaccine candidate and IAVI’s other SUDV vaccine candidate, which utilizes the same viral vector but is manufactured using a new production platform.

The SUDV vaccine candidate being evaluated in IAVI C108 uses the same recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV) viral vector platform as ERVEBO®, Merck’s single-dose ZEBOV vaccine, which is licensed in the U.S., U.K., European Union, Canada, Switzerland, and 10 African countries.

“IAVI C108 represents an important first step toward generating the data needed for eventual licensure of an rVSV-SUDV vaccine. The development and licensure of ERVEBO® have resulted in an important tool in Ebola Zaire outbreak responses. If proven effective, we’re hopeful that a vaccine candidate built on the same viral platform will be similarly important in future SUDV outbreaks,” said Swati Gupta, Ph.D., vice president and head of emerging infectious diseases and epidemiology at IAVI, in a related press release.

The rVSV platform has been used extensively in adults and children. The underlying vesicular stomatitis virus is a common animal virus that does not cause serious illness in humans and has been investigated extensively as a vaccine vector.

In the vaccine platform, it is engineered to encode a surface protein from a target pathogen, in this case, SUDV, to prompt the body to mount an immune response.

Much of the research and development on IAVI’s rVSV platform is performed at the IAVI Vaccine Design and Development Lab in Brooklyn, New York.