The Meningitis Vaccine Project is an effort to eliminate the
meningitis
Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion ...
epidemic
An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time.
Epidemics of infectious d ...
meningococcal vaccine
Meningococcal vaccine refers to any vaccine used to prevent infection by ''Neisseria meningitidis''. Different versions are effective against some or all of the following types of meningococcus: A, B, C, W-135, and Y. The vaccines are between 85 ...
. The meningitis problem in that area is caused by a strain of meningitis called "meningitis A", which is present only in the
African meningitis belt
The African meningitis belt is a region in sub-Saharan Africa where the rate of incidence of meningitis is very high. It extends from Senegal to Ethiopia, and the primary cause of meningitis in the belt is '' Neisseria meningitidis''.
The belt w ...
. In June 2010 various sources announced that they had developed
MenAfriVac MenAfriVac is a vaccine developed for use in sub-Saharan Africa for children and adults between 9 months and 29 years of age against meningococcal bacterium ''Neisseria meningitidis'' group A. The vaccine costs less than US$0.50 per dose.
History ...
, which is an inexpensive, safe, and highly effective vaccine which is likely to stop the epidemic as quickly as anyone had ever hoped that it would.
The project marked the first time that medical research had developed a vaccine to combat a disease which is endemic to and only a problem for Africa.
The project began in 2001 when the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it w ...
awarded the
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level o ...
and the
Program for Appropriate Technology in Health
PATH (formerly known as the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health) is an international, nonprofit global health organization based in Seattle, with 1,600 employees in more than 70 countries around the world. Its president and CEO is Niko ...
(PATH) a US $70 million seed grant to begin research.
Background
In 2001, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded the World Health Organization and the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) a US$70 million seed grant to launch the Meningitis Vaccine Project.
Implementation
The mission of the Project is to eliminate meningitis as a public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa through the development, testing, introduction, and widespread use of conjugate meningococcal vaccines. The Project recently developed
MenAfriVac MenAfriVac is a vaccine developed for use in sub-Saharan Africa for children and adults between 9 months and 29 years of age against meningococcal bacterium ''Neisseria meningitidis'' group A. The vaccine costs less than US$0.50 per dose.
History ...
, a low-cost conjugate A vaccine that is ready for widespread distribution to people between the ages of 1 and 29 in
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...
,
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...
, and
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages three countries in the African meningitis belt with the highest rates of meningitis.
Manufacture
By working with the
Serum Institute of India
Serum Institute of India (SII) is an Indian biotechnology and biopharmaceuticals company, based in Pune. It is the world's largest manufacturer of vaccines. It was founded by Cyrus Poonawalla in 1966 and is a part of Cyrus Poonawalla Group.
...
Ltd. to manufacture the vaccine, the Project was able to develop a vaccine that would be affordable to developing African countries, priced at less than $US.50 per dose. Unlike existing vaccines, MenAfriVac also provides immunity for a long period of time—10 to 15 years—and is safe for use in infants one year of age and older. Following successful trials, the vaccine was introduced in three African countries in 2010.
See also
*
African meningitis belt
The African meningitis belt is a region in sub-Saharan Africa where the rate of incidence of meningitis is very high. It extends from Senegal to Ethiopia, and the primary cause of meningitis in the belt is '' Neisseria meningitidis''.
The belt w ...
Meningococcal vaccine
Meningococcal vaccine refers to any vaccine used to prevent infection by ''Neisseria meningitidis''. Different versions are effective against some or all of the following types of meningococcus: A, B, C, W-135, and Y. The vaccines are between 85 ...