Catching up with ECRC: Forging ahead with vaccine research and development to safeguard against future pandemic threats
From its launch in 2019 up to early 2024, ECRC helped the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), headquartered in Norway, accelerate vaccine development to protect the health and economic well-being of millions. Building on lessons learnt from the 2014-2016 Ebola crisis in West Africa and the COVID-19 pandemic, CEPI used ECRC funding to further develop vaccines for Ebola, Chikungunya and Rift Valley fever. These efforts could help speed up future responses to outbreaks, not only of these diseases but also of other viruses in the same viral families. In 2019, EU funding supported a large-scale clinical study in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The study was led by the Ministry of Health and Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale, and supported by CEPI and other global health partners, with an Ebola vaccine manufactured by Janssen Pharmaceuticals. This was part of the effort to control the 2019 outbreak in the country’s North Kivu region. CEPI now continues to support further Ebola vaccine research and recently launched a call for proposals for the development of new vaccines that could protect against Ebola and other deadly pathogens from the same viral family.
The fight against Chikungunya and Rift Valley fever
Efforts to combat Rift Valley fever – an acute, potentially fatal viral haemorrhagic disease – included investments in the development of two human vaccine candidates to protect against it. One of the candidates, developed by Wageningen University in the Netherlands, was among the first in the world to enter clinical trials and recently published promising first results of its Phase I study conducted in Belgium. The data generated has provided the clinical trial material suitable for the conduct of Phase I/II trials in endemic regions in East Africa under subsequent EC-CEPI collaboration. This represents an important step in ensuring a future vaccine benefits those most at risk. CEPI is currently considering exploring other promising Rift Valley fever vaccine research. Additional initiatives include a workshop recently held in Nairobi, Kenya, which brought together 60 Rift Valley fever experts to discuss epidemiological and modelling research gaps. CEPI is now seeking applications from research teams that combine expertise in Rift Valley fever epidemiology, modelling and AI to investigate crucial questions about when, where, why and how outbreaks occur, and whether vaccine trials are indeed possible. ECRC support has also allowed CEPI to invest millions in three vaccine candidates, including the first-ever licensed Chikungunya vaccine developed by French pharmaceutical company Valneva approved for use in adults in the United States, Canada and Europe. Valneva is now pursuing licensure in Brazil with support from the EU and CEPI. Through a joint collaboration, the EU and CEPI are supporting studies to broaden access to the vaccine in low- and middle-income countries and to expand the use of licensed Chikungunya vaccines for children and pregnant women. Sally Girgis-Hjoberg, Head of Resource Mobilisation and Investor Relations, comments on some of the project’s achievements to date: “I am particularly proud of the role CEPI, the European Union and Valneva have played in advancing the first-ever Chikungunya vaccine, to licensure … Now we are focusing our attention to expand access to the vaccine globally, including low- and middle-income countries where Chikungunya is endemic.”
Keywords
ECRC, Rift Valley fever, Chikungunya, Ebola, vaccine, disease, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, CEPI