First Human Trials For Nipah Virus Vaccine

Context: 

Scientists at the University of Oxford U.K. have launched first-in-human Nipah Virus Vaccine trials for the Nipah virus disease.

Nipah Virus Vaccine: ChAdOx1 NipahB 

• Nipah Virus Vaccine Name: ChAdOx1 NipahB vaccine.
• The vaccine uses the ChAdOx1 platform, the same that was used for the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
• Trail: It will consist of 51 people aged 18 to 55, for a period of the next 18 months, led by the Oxford Vaccine Group.

About Nipah Virus

• About: It belongs to a  family of paramyxoviruses.
• First  identified: In 1998 in Malaysia and Singapore in an outbreak among pig farmers.
• Carriers:  Fruit bats of the family Pteropodidae acts as a natural host of the virus.

Transmission of Nipah Virus 

• Outbreaks: Outbreaks have occurred in countries in Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia, Bangladesh and India with Kerala seeing annual outbreaks. Nature of Transmission:
  • It is zoonotic in nature  ( transmitted from animals to humans)

• • Unprotected  exposure to secretions or tissues of a sick animal (Eg: Malaysia)
  • Consumption  of fruits or fruit products (such as raw date palm juice) contaminated with urine or saliva from infected fruit bats was the most likely source of infection ( Example: cases in Kerala) 
• Human-to-human transmission of Nipah virus has also been reported among family and caregivers of infected patients. (Example: Siliguri, India in 2001,  75% of cases occurred among hospital staff or visitors.)
• Infection: Human infections range from asymptomatic infection to acute respiratory infection (mild, severe), and fatal encephalitis progressing to coma within 24 to 48 hours. 
  • The incubation period (interval from infection to the onset of symptoms) is believed to range from 4 to 14 days.
• Diagnosis:  The main tests used are real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from bodily fluids and antibody detection via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). 
• Treatment: There are currently no drugs or vaccines specific for Nipah virus infection.
• WHO Status: WHO has identified Nipah as a priority disease for the WHO Research and Development Blueprint saying it has pandemic potential.

Also Refer: 

• GEMCOVACOM: India’s First MRNA Vaccine
• World’s First Vaccine For Chikungunya Approved

News Source: The Hindu