Sanofi dengue fever vaccine enters Phase III studies
Novel vaccine for the prevention of dengue fever in children and adults
Sanofi Pasteur’s dengue fever vaccine is in the final stage of clinical development, having entered its first Phase III clinical study in Australia.
The vaccines division of French drugmaker sanofi-aventis says this study is part of a global Phase III clinical trial programme to advance the development of a novel vaccine for the prevention of dengue disease in children and adults.
Dengue fever is a threat to nearly three billion people and a public health priority in many countries of Latin America and Asia.
‘We are now entering the final laps of a long run that Sanofi Pasteur started almost 20 years ago. If successful, we are committed to introducing the vaccine in countries where dengue is a public health priority,’ said Wayne Pisano, president and chief executive of Sanofi Pasteur.
Sanofi Pasteur’s candidate dengue vaccine, which targets all four virus serotypes, has previously been evaluated in Phase I and II clinical trials in adults and children in the US, Asia and Latin America. The company says a balanced immune response against all four serotypes was observed after three doses of the vaccine.
Clinical studies in adults and children are ongoing in Mexico, Colombia, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Peru, the Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, Australia, and Thailand.