Promising Live Chikungunya Vaccine Shows 98.9% Protection in Human Trial

A recent Phase III human trial has revealed a live chikungunya vaccine to be highly protective, offering a potential solution to the rising global spread of mosquito-borne illnesses associated with climate change. The vaccine, administered as a single shot, demonstrated an impressive response rate of 98.9% in participants after 28 days.

Chikungunya, characterized by severe joint and muscle pain, high fever, and skin rashes, is a debilitating mosquito-borne disease prevalent in various regions of Africa, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and subtropical areas of the Americas. Currently, no effective treatment or vaccine exists for this illness.

The live-attenuated vaccine, known as VLA1553, is based on the La Reunion strain of chikungunya, belonging to the East Central South African genotype. In a clinical study, the vaccine was generally well tolerated and generated an immune response in 99% of participants (263 out of 266).

Lead author Martina Schneider, clinical strategy manager at Valneva, highlights the vaccine’s potential significance for active immunization of travellers and residents in endemic areas or those at risk of outbreaks. The researchers emphasize the vaccine’s long-term protection after a single immunization, which is crucial considering the disease’s unstable epidemiology.

Published in The Lancet on June 12, these promising findings could pave the way for regulatory approval, offering millions of people protection against this mosquito-borne disease. The availability of a chikungunya vaccine would alleviate the burden of prolonged illness and painful arthritis experienced by severe cases, which can last for weeks.