The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a study listing 17 disease-causing pathogens for which vaccine research and development is urgently needed.
The study, published in eBioMedicine, is said by the WHO to be the first global effort to systematically prioritise endemic pathogens based on criteria that include regional disease burden, antimicrobial resistance risk, and socioeconomic impact.
Longstanding priorities for vaccine development; including HIV, malaria and tuberculosis were confirmed by the study: these three diseases are said to claim some 2.5 million lives each year. But Group A streptococcus, and Klebsiella pneumonias were listed as disease control priorities in all regions, as pathogens become resistant to antimicrobials.
The WHO priority list of global endemic pathogens for vaccine research and development supports the Immunisation Agenda 2030 goal of ensuring that people in all regions can benefit from the protection of vaccination against serious diseases. The WHO said that the list is intended to give academics, funders, manufacturers and countries a clear direction for where vaccine R&D could have the most impact.
“Too often global decisions on new vaccines have been solely driven by return on investment, rather than by the number of lives that could be saved in the most vulnerable communities,” said Dr Kate O’Brien, director of the immunisation, vaccines and biologicals department at the WHO. “This study uses broad regional expertise and data to assess vaccines that would not only significantly reduce diseases that greatly impact communities today, but also reduce the medical costs that families and health systems face.”
In developing the list, the WHO asked international and regional experts to identify factors that were most important when deciding which vaccines to introduce and use. The analysis of those preferences, combined with regional data for each pathogen, resulted in the top 10 priority pathogens for each WHO region. The regional lists where then consolidated to form the global list, resulting in 17 priority endemic pathogens for which new vaccines need to be researched, developed and used.
The focus on vaccine R&D follows a WHO report earlier this year which set out the state of development of antibacterials. The report concluded that there is urgent need for ‘new innovative agents to treat serious infections, as well as replacing existing treatments that are becoming ineffective due to widespread use.’
The WHO priority endemic pathogens list includes:
Pathogens where vaccine research is needed
- Group A streptococcus
- Hepatitis C virus
- HIV-1
- Klebsiella pneumoniae
Pathogens where vaccines need to be further developed
- Cytomegalovirus
- Influenza virus (broadly protective vaccine)
- Leishmania species
- Non-typhoidal Salmonella
- Norovirus
- Plasmodium falciparum (malaria)
- Shigella species
- Staphylococcus aureus
Pathogens where vaccines are approaching regulatory approval, policy recommendation or introduction
- Dengue virus
- Group B streptococcus
- Extra-intestinal pathogenic E. coli
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV
- Genomics key to pandemic early warning system
- WHO seeks to boost mRNA vaccine development against avian flu in humans
- EU prioritises threats to health while WHO calls for new vaccines to tackle AMR
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