Brazil, University of Texas reach deal on vaccine

BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazil has signed an agreement with the University of Texas to develop a vaccine against the Zika virus, adding the goal is for the vaccine to be ready for clinical testing within 12 months.

Health Minister Marcelo Castro said at a news conference that the government will invest $ 1.9 million in the research, which will be jointly conducted by the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and the Evandro Chagas Institute in the Amazonian city of Belem.

He said the Health Ministry also has reached vaccine partnerships with the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is looking to work with pharmaceutical giant Glaxo-SmithKline because of its role developing a vaccine against Ebola after a deadly outbreak in West Africa in 2014.

Brazil’s Zika outbreak has become a public health crisis since researchers in the country linked the mosquito- borne virus to a surge in a rare birth defect compromising infants’ brains. The connection has yet to be scientifically proven, but the CDC has pointed to strong evidence of a link between the two and called on pregnant women to avoid travel to 22 countries and territories in the Americas with active outbreaks.

Brazilian officials have previously said any vaccine for Zika could take as many as five years, but Castro on Thursday said he was more optimistic, saying that it could be ready for distribution within three years.

As part of a stream of foreign researchers and regulators arriving to the South American nation in the coming days, representatives from the U. S. Food and Drug Administration will meet with their Brazilian counterparts to ensure that clinical testing of the vaccine can take place as quickly and smoothly as possible.

“This isn’t just Brazil’s concern; it’s the world’s concern,” said Castro.

Castro said World Health Organization chief Margaret Chan is expected to visit Brazil on Feb. 23 to help coordinate the government’s response with other agencies around the world. An initial delegation of 15 researchers from the CDC was slated to arrive in Brazil on Friday, he added.