TOKYO, January 31. /TASS/. The Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Tokyo will launch the first stage of human trials of a vaccine for the Nipah virus in April, the Nikkei newspaper reported.
The vaccine is based on the measles virus. When injected into the human body, it should promote the production of proteins similar to those of the Nipah virus, which will strengthen the immune system and can protect the development of infection in case of infection.
The University of Tokyo has already confirmed the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine in tests on hamsters and other animals. If the first stage, to be held in Belgium, is successful, the next stages of testing the safety and efficacy of the vaccine in adults and children will be held in Bangladesh in the second half of 2027.
Financing is provided by the Japanese state Center for Advanced Research and Development SCARDA, which coordinates the development of vaccines in Japan.
The Nipah virus (NiV) is a pathogen borne by bats from the fruit-eating bat family. It can be transmitted from animals to humans and cause severe forms of encephalitis and respiratory infections, with mortality of up to 80% in some cases. Outbreaks of the Nipah virus infection occur annually in South and Southeast Asia and cause a large number of deaths. Since the discovery of this disease in 1998, about a thousand people have become infected with it. The virus causes brain inflammation and severe respiratory diseases. There is no vaccine for it yet.
In the Indian state of West Bengal, two cases of Nipah virus infection were identified in January. Both patients are alive and in hospital. The WHO confirmed that none of the 190 people who came into contact with the infected had symptoms and they received negative test results. The risk at the national, regional and global levels is considered low, the WHO believes.