Status of research and development of vaccines for chikungunya

Abstract

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an arthritogenic alphavirus that during the last decade has significantly expanded its geographical range and caused large outbreaks of human disease around the world. Although mortality rates associated with CHIKV outbreaks are low, acute and chronic illnesses caused by CHIKV represent a significant burden of disease largely affecting low and middle income countries. This report summarizes the current status of vaccine development for CHIKV.

SNAP-tagged Chikungunya Virus Replicons Improve Visualisation of Non-Structural Protein 3 by Fluorescence Microscopy

“…Moreover, global travel may facilitate the further spread of CHIKV, while climate change may expand the habitat of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which transmit the virus to humans 3 . Numerous vaccine candidates are in development, but the explosive nature of CHIKV epidemics may complicate efficacy testing in humans 4 . Various reports link anti-CHIKV activity to drug candidates (for a review, see ref.…”

Vaccinations for Neuroinfectious Disease: A Global Health Priority

“…Though mortality is low compared with other arboviral diseases (<1 %), morbidity can be significant, in the form of persistent polyarthralgia. For instance, there are reports of up to 60 % of survivors suffering from joint pain three years post-infection [42]. There are also reported neurologic complications, including meningoencephalitis, myelitis, and Guillain-Barré syndrome.…”

“…Two inactivated whole virus vaccines have reached Phase 1 trials, and one in a measles vector platform has reached Phase 2 trials [42]. Chikungunya vaccine efforts are not entirely new; in the 1980s, the US military developed a live-attenuated vaccine with strong immunogenicity and mild side effects, namely transient arthralgia in approximately 10 % of the recipients.…”

“…Chikungunya vaccine efforts are not entirely new; in the 1980s, the US military developed a live-attenuated vaccine with strong immunogenicity and mild side effects, namely transient arthralgia in approximately 10 % of the recipients. This vaccine was discontinued owing to low priority at the time, but has since been provided to vaccine developers following the chikungunya resurgence in the mid-2000s [42].…”

Challenges for the Utilization of Vaccines Against Arthritogenic Alphaviruses

“…These recent outbreaks have been associated with Asian or African genotype viruses rather than the IOL variant that emerged in 2005.The re-emergence of CHIKV over the past decade prompted a renewed interest in the development of candidate vaccines, therapies and diagnostic assays. More than 20 different candidate vaccines utilizing a wide range of platforms/approaches and potential single or multidose immunization schedules have been developed, of which a handful have entered, or soon will enter, clinical trials [8,9]. All of these candidates aim to stimulate neutralizing antibodies against the E1 and E2 structural proteins on the virion.…”