News Excerpt:
U.S. health authorities approved the world's first vaccine for chikungunya.
About Chikungunya:
- It is a mosquito-borne viral disease that causes fever and severe joint pain.
- The disease was first recognized in 1952 during an outbreak in southern Tanzania.
- It is a ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus that belongs to the alphavirus genus of the family Togaviridae.
- Chikungunya is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected female mosquitoes. Most commonly, the mosquitoes involved are Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus.
- They bite throughout daylight hours, although there may be peaks of activity in the early morning and late afternoon.
- There is currently no vaccine to prevent or medicine to treat chikungunya virus infection.
- It is generally seen in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, southeast Asia, and parts of the Americas.
- It can be passed from a pregnant person to their unborn child, and the virus can be fatal to newborns.
- People with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease, as well as those over the age of 65, are more prone to develop severe chikungunya symptoms.
About Valneva’s vaccine:
- It is being developed by Valneva in Europe and will be sold under the brand name Ixchiq.
- The vaccine is injected in one dose and contains a live, weakened version of the chikungunya virus, as is standard with other vaccines.
Future threat regarding Chikungunya:
- Public health experts have expressed concerns that chikungunya could be a potential future pandemic threat as climate change pushes the mosquitoes that spread it into new regions.
