Context: R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine added to the WHO’s list of prequalified vaccines.

• The R21 Malaria vaccine is the second malaria shot approved by WHO, following the RTS,S/AS01.

About R21/Matrix-M Malaria Vaccine

• It is developed by the University of Oxford and manufactured by Serum Institute of India.
• Recommended Usage: To prevent Malaria in children under 5 years of age.
• Efficacy: It can reduce malaria cases by 75% over a year.
• Price: It will be priced around $5 per dose at high volumes. Hence making it cheaper and accessible to a larger population

About Malaria

• About: It is caused by Plasmodium parasites, which spread through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.
  • It is caused in humans by five species of parasite, but 2 amongst them – Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax  constitute the bulk of the incidence of infection.
• Malaria is not contagious and cannot spread from one person to another,  also, it is preventable and curable.
• In 2021, an estimated 247 million people contracted malaria in 85 countries, and the disease claimed approximately 619,000 lives.
• India accounts for 3% of the global Malaria burden.

Also Read: 

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

News source: Down to Earth