Ghana has become the first country in the world to approve the use of a vaccine against malaria developed by the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, the institution said on Thursday.
The R21/Matrix-M vaccine, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, is the first to surpass the World Health Organization (WHO) target of 75% efficacy and has received approval from the Food and Drug Authority of Ghana (FDA, in English acronym).
The immunizer works through the recombinant protein method, which was not used by any of the Covid vaccines applied in Brazil. Malaria is caused by a protozoan, Plasmodium, which is larger and more complex than viruses and bacteria. The protein is similar to one that causes malaria on its surface and helps it parasitize human cells. By introducing the protein to the human immune system, the vaccine helps the body mount defenses before the protozoan arrives.
“It has been approved for use in children aged 5 to 36 months, the age group most at risk of dying from malaria,” the university said in a statement.
“This crucial first step is expected to enable the vaccine to help Ghanaian and African children effectively fight malaria,” the organization said.
Adrian Hill, lead investigator of the R21/Matrix-M program and director of the Jenner Institute Oxford, said that Ghana’s decision “marks the culmination of 30 years of malaria vaccine research at Oxford with the design and delivery of a highly effective vaccine that can be delivered at an appropriate scale to countries that need it most.”
It is a low-dose vaccine that can be manufactured on a large scale and at a modest cost, allowing hundreds of millions of doses to be supplied to the African countries that suffer most from malaria.
R21/Matrix-M has undergone clinical trials in the UK, Thailand and several African countries, including an ongoing Phase III study in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Mali and Tanzania involving 4,800 children.
The results of these tests are expected to be published later this year.
In 2021, the RTS,S vaccine — produced by British pharmaceutical giant GSK — became the first malaria vaccine recommended for widespread use by the WHO, although research showed the product was around 60% effective and declined significantly over time. of time.
According to the WHO 2022 World Malaria Report, the disease killed 619,000 people in 2021, with 96% of these deaths recorded in Africa.
“Together with existing interventions, this vaccine (R21/Matrix-M) will help save more lives,” emphasized the Alliance for Vaccination (Gavi) in a statement today.
“The prequalification dossier for R21 has been accepted for WHO review and we expect the phase III results to be published soon. If WHO recommends wider use of the vaccine, Gavi and Unicef can start funding and acquiring doses immediately,” added Gavi.
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