Monkeypox: 5-10 million jabs needed to fight global health emergency, says WHO
1 min read 27 Jul 2022, 09:31 PM ISTUS and European regulators have approved the use of Jynneos vaccine doses as global efforts to tackle the monkeypox outbreak
PremiumThe World Health Organisation (WHO) senior official on Wednesday said that the world needs 5-10 million doses of the Monkeypox vaccine to protect high-risk groups from the virus outbreak.
The WHO director also asked countries with smallpox vaccine to share them during the Monkeypox outbreaks. The aims to do so would be to offer equitable access to vaccines during another pandemic.
Meanwhile, drugmaker Bavarian Nordic said US and European regulators have approved the use of Jynneos vaccine doses made at the company's plant in Denmark as global efforts to tackle the monkeypox outbreak pick up pace.
The US Food and Drug Administration's approval for the fill-and-finish plant will lead to the availability of an additional 786,000 doses of vaccine in the United States, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
"Additional doses manufactured at this plant can help address the need for this vaccine moving forward," the FDA said.
Bavarian has received orders for millions of doses from across the globe, including nearly 7 million vaccine doses this year and next to the United States.
The Indian government on Wednesday invited expression of interest (EOI) for developing a vaccine against the monkeypox virus. This comes after India reported four cases of monkeypox so far.
The government has invited EoI from the experienced vaccine manufacturers, in-vitro diagnostic (IVD) kit manufacturers for joint collaboration in developing of vaccine candidate against the monkeypox disease.
More than 18,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported globally from 78 countries, with the majority in Europe, according to the World Health Organization. The UN health agency has declared an emergency over the outbreak.
Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease with symptoms similar to smallpox, although with less clinical severity. The virus is a part of the family of variola virus, which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus, the virus which results in causing small pox.
(With inputs from agencies)
