LIBERIA – The nonprofit scientific research organization IAVI announced that volunteers at the PREVAIL clinical trial site at Redemption Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia have been vaccinated with IAVI’s novel vaccine candidate against Lassa fever virus (LASV) in a Phase I clinical trial.
IAVI said on its website that the Phase I clinical trial dubbed IAVI C102 was supported by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) in ongoing global efforts to produce a licensed Lassa vaccine for routine immunization.
The clinical trial dubbed IAVI C102 is designed to evaluate the vaccine candidate’s safety, tolerability, and ability to elicit an immune response against Lassa fever among approximately 100 healthy adults in the U.S. and Liberia, according to the IAVI.
In addition, a Lassa fever vaccine will greatly reduce the disease burden by flattening the epidemic curve of seasonal outbreaks, offering hope and relief to local populations, especially rural communities who continue to suffer the brunt of the disease.
“CEPI’s ultimate goal, as part of its plan to minimize or even eliminate the risk of future epidemic and pandemic threats, is to produce a licensed Lassa vaccine for routine immunization,” highlights IAVI.
LASV causes significant annual outbreaks of an acute viral illness called Lassa fever, which is endemic, or consistently present, in many parts of West Africa. Outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, and Togo have resulted in nearly 6,000 suspected cases and more than 180 deaths since early 2022.
The IAVI-sponsored trial is part of the existing partnership with CEPI providing up to US$61.7 million to support IAVI and a global consortium of partners to advance IAVI’s LASV vaccine candidate through Phase I and II clinical trials.
Following IAVI C102, a Phase II trial of the vaccine candidate is also planned in partnership with CEPI, with funding already announced by CEPI and the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) for a Phase IIb trial in West Africa.
The ongoing Phase I clinical trial of Lassa fever vaccine in Liberia comes at a time when no vaccine for Lassa fever virus is currently available despite an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 Lassa fever cases reported annually, resulting in approximately 5,000 deaths.
IAVI further said that clinical evaluation of IAVI’s LASV vaccine candidate is supported by the Partnership for Research on Vaccines and Infectious Diseases in Liberia (PREVAIL), established by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the Ministry of Health in Liberia.
“IAVI and CEPI are united in their commitment to global equitable access to vaccines, with IAVI’s LASV vaccine candidate to be accessible to all populations that need it, should it be found safe and efficacious in clinical testing,” the scientific research organization said.
The organization explained that continued Lassa fever outbreaks underscore the need to realize rapid vaccine development and plan for widespread access before and during disease outbreaks.
“We believe that IAVI’s rVSV technology offers a promising and validated new platform for development of vaccines that target outbreak-associated pathogens like Lassa fever virus,” said Swati Gupta, Dr. P.H., MPH, vice president and head of emerging infectious diseases and epidemiology, IAVI.
Swati Gupta highlighted that the experienced, broader network of collaborators in the IAVI C102 trial bring expertise in both rVSV vaccine development and in conducting clinical trials in endemic settings.
“Together, we’ll glean important safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity data while strengthening the individuals, institutions, and technology needed to develop urgently needed Lassa fever vaccines,” he added.
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