First 'not-for-profit' vaccine developed

摘要

GlaxoSmithKline PLC is starting the registration process for a vaccine that is unlikely to make the company any money. Cloborix is a combination vaccine that will protect against Neisseria meningitidis serogroups A and C, whooping cough, diphtheria, tetanus, hepatitis B and influenza. Large outbreaks of meningitis occur approximately every 8-12 years across the so-called meningitis belt (21 countries and 400 million people) and the last outbreak killed 25,000 people. The vaccine will only be used in Africa and will be purchased by the WHO and non-governmental organizations. It is hoped that this vaccine will be a cheap and sustainable response to disease in developing countries. GSK chief executive Jean-Pierre Gamier said "We have found a pretty clever way to fund therapeutic solutions for the developing world without essentially sacrificing the more traditional research we do on diseases around the world."