UK researchers creating new vaccines for epidemic diseases such as Zika and Ebola are among the winners of £22 million of funding, announced by the Department of Health.
The funding is being shared among 26 vaccine development projects. These projects are among the first to benefit from the UK Vaccine Network £120 million fund, established to support Britain’s role fighting deadly diseases.
As part of the fund, the Department is also launching a further two competitions, worth £60 million, to give academics and scientists the opportunity to apply for financial support. This scale of investment means the UK is the second largest funder of research in this field.
The money supports targeted investments in vaccines for diseases with epidemic potential including projects working to prevent Ebola, Zika and Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever. The Government is also supporting four projects – worth £2.4 million combined – to develop successful prevention vaccines for diseases which are bioterror threats, such as Plague and Q Fever.
