WHO warning prompts fast EU action
The swift development of a vaccine against the Zika virus has become an urgent priority for, among others, EU Commissioner for Research and Innovation Carlos Moedas, who has pledged an initial €10m into its research.
“I have instructed my services to mobilise €10m for urgently needed research on the Zika virus in response to the upsurge in cases of severe congenital brain malformations across Latin America and their suspected link to Zika virus infections,” Moedas said.
The money contributed by the EU will come from Horizon 2020 for investment in diagnostics and experimental drug candidates research. At least three pharmaceutical companies, including French giant Sanofi, have also announced their commitment to tackling the mosquito-borne virus.
Following criticism for a slow response regarding the Ebola outbreak of 2014, for which the EU pledged around €25m, the World Health Organization declared the Zika outbreak a global public health emergency and anticipates infection of up to four million people in the South and central American regions so far this year.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) declares that the risk in the EU of transmission remains extremely low: ‘There is no evidence of transmission Zika virus in Europe to date and imported cases are rare’, its website states.
There are currently five invasive Aedes mosquito species known to be established in Europe, namely Aedes albopictus, Aedes aegypti, Aedes japonicus, Aedes atropalpus and Aedes koreicus. A rapid risk assessment compiled by the ECDC can be found here.
