50,000 Second-Gen Smallpox Vaccines Donated to Stop Mpox Clade 1 Outbreak

Emergent BioSolutions today announced it has pledged to donate 50,000 doses of its ACAM2000® (Smallpox (Vaccinia) Vaccine, Live) through a humanitarian relief organization to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the other impacted countries of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda.

In October 2023, Emergent filed a supplemental Biologics License Application to the U.S. FDA seeking an expanded indication for the ACAM2000 vaccine to include immunization against the mpox virus. The FDA target for review completion in the third quarter of 2024.

These efforts are in response to the WHO’s recent statement declaring that the upsurge of mpox clade 1 in African countries constitutes a public health emergency of international concern under the International Health Regulations.

“Africa CDC estimated they will need 10 million doses to control the epidemic in the continent,” said Dr. Raina McIntyre, Professor of Global Biosecurity, NHMRC L3 Research Fellow, Head, Biosecurity Program, Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales Sydney, in a press release on August 19, 2024.

“It is unlikely there will be enough supply of 3rd generation vaccines (JYNNEOS®, MVA-BN®) to control the epidemic in Africa, given demand in other countries.”