Nigeria Challenges Lassa Fever Vaccine Development

The Nigeria — Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has challenged Nigerian scientists, led by Sonny Echono, to accelerate the development of Nigeria's first Lassa fever vaccine. This call follows the presentation of findings from a TETFund-sponsored Mega Research Project on Lassa Fever conducted by the Western University of Health Sciences, under the leadership of Vice-Chancellor Francis Aba Uba and Principal Investigator Joseph Okopi. The research, which received a N250 million grant, revealed that Nigeria bears the highest global burden of Lassa fever, with 5,000 to 10,000 annual deaths. Key findings include high antibody prevalence in Nigeria — Benue State and identification of environmental risk factors, while challenging the belief that eating rodents is a major cause of infection. The findings will be escalated to the United States — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Nigeria — Federal Ministry of Interior (Nigeria) to inform policy and support the establishment of a vaccine development centre in Nigeria.