🌍 GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) announced a recommendation for a second malaria vaccine named R21/Matrix-M.🦟 This comes two years after the first malaria vaccine, RTS,S, was endorsed.
🎓 Developed by the University of Oxford, R21/Matrix-M will be available by mid-2024 with a cost between $2 and $4 per dose. It's produced in bulk by India's Serum Institute and uses Novavax's Matrix M adjuvant.
💉 Serum Institute's CEO mentioned producing over 20 million doses in anticipation and aims for no demand-supply mismatch by 2024. This vaccine will compete with GSK's RTS,S vaccine, branded as Mosquirix.
✅ Both vaccines have shown equal efficiency in separate tests, but without direct comparisons, it's unclear if one is superior. Countries will choose based on factors like affordability.
🦠 In another announcement, WHO recommended Takeda Pharmaceuticals' dengue vaccine, Qdenga, for kids 6-16 years in affected areas. This vaccine has shown effectiveness against the dengue virus, though there are still uncertainties.
🦠 Lastly, WHO suggested a single-dose regimen for most COVID-19 vaccines, especially since many people have had a previous infection. They also commented on vaccine availability for specific COVID-19 variants.
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