Oxford Launches Plague Vaccine Study

Researchers at the University of Oxford in Englan launched a Phase 1 clinical trial to test a new vaccine against plague. Based on the ChAdOx1 adenovirus viral vector platform also used in the Oxford - AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine Vaxzevria. The intramuscular plague vaccine candidate can also be given orally under the tongue.

Currently, there is not a U.S. FDA Approved plague vaccine available.

Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, Director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said in a press statement issued on July 27, 2021, ‘The coronavirus pandemic has shown the importance of vaccines to defend populations from the threat caused by bacteria and viruses."

"Plague threatened the world in several horrific waves over past millennia, and, even today, outbreaks continue to disrupt communities. A new vaccine to prevent plague is important for them and for our health security.’

Although for much of the world, the plague has been eliminated, it is endemic to rural areas in central and southern Africa (Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Madagascar), central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, the northeastern part of South America, and parts of the southwestern United States, says the U.S. CDC. 

Several antibiotics are used in the treatment of plague, including gentamicin, doxycycline, ciprofloxacin, and levofloxacin.

Christine Rollier, Associate Professor of Vaccinology at the Oxford Vaccine Group, added ‘Although antibiotics can be used to treat plague, many areas experiencing outbreaks are very remote locations. In such areas, an effective vaccine could offer a successful prevention strategy to combat the disease.’

About forty healthy adults aged 18 to 55 will receive this new vaccine candidate to assess side effects and determine how well it induces protective antibody and T cell responses. Volunteers for the clinical trial will receive expert follow-up for 12 months before the researchers begin evaluating the data in order to report their findings. If you are aged 18 to 55 years old and in good health, you may be eligible to participate in the study.

To find out more about the study, or to sign up, please visit: https://trials.ovg.ox.ac.uk/trials/plague.

The Oxford Vaccine Group was founded in 1994 by Professor E. Richard Moxon and conducts studies of new and improved vaccines for children and adults and is based in the Department of Paediatrics at the University of Oxford.