Vaccine to prevent Nipah virus infection
Preclinical development of a vaccine for Nipah virus
This project is creating a vaccine to protect people at risk from the deadly Nipah virus, such as healthcare workers and close contacts.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Texas Med Br Galveston NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Galveston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11345293 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers are building a vaccine that uses a harmless viral backbone displaying the Nipah virus surface protein to teach the immune system to recognize Nipah. They will test the vaccine in high-containment laboratory and animal experiments to see whether it makes protective antibodies and prevents disease. Work is done in BSL-4 facilities because Nipah is highly dangerous, and the team will measure immune responses and protection before any human testing. If findings are strong, the data would support moving the vaccine into safety trials in people.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: The most likely candidates for eventual use or trials are healthcare and laboratory workers, close contacts of Nipah cases, and people living in or traveling to outbreak regions.
Not a fit: People with little or no risk of Nipah exposure or those who are severely immunocompromised may not benefit or may not be eligible for early vaccine use.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this vaccine could prevent Nipah virus infections and reduce deaths among exposed people and outbreak contacts.
How similar studies have performed: Related rVSV-based vaccine approaches have protected animals against Nipah and the same rVSV platform was used successfully for Ebola in humans, so the strategy has encouraging precedents.
Where this research is happening
Galveston, United States
- University of Texas Med Br Galveston — Galveston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Geisbert, Thomas William — University of Texas Med Br Galveston
- Study coordinator: Geisbert, Thomas William
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.