Valneva Reports Positive Final Phase 2 Antibody Persistence and Safety Results in Children for its Chikungunya Vaccine IXCHIQ®.
Valneva Reports Positive Final Phase 2 Antibody Persistence and Safety Results in Children for its Chikungunya Vaccine IXCHIQ®
Published: December 10, 2025.
He made beer that’s also a vaccine. Now controversy is brewing.
A scientist’s unconventional project illustrates many challenges in developing new vaccines. This article presents the first potential vaccine platform in which antigens are delivered through yeast incorporated into a beer formulation.
Published: December 19, 2025.
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/vaccine-beer-polyomavirus-chris-buck
ECDC: Early estimates of seasonal influenza vaccine effectiveness against influenza requiring medical attention at primary care level in Europe, week 41 – 49, 2025.
Preliminary data from the Vaccine Effectiveness, Burden and Impact Studies (VEBIS) primary care multicentre study indicate that the seasonal vaccines available in EU are providing protection against influenza A(H3N2) infection, with vaccine effectiveness ranging from 52% to 57%.
Published: December 19, 2025.
Nepal reports sharp rise in Japanese encephalitis in 2025; Seeks help for 2026 vaccination campaign.
The Nepal Ministry of Health and Population has reported 35 fatalities to Japanese encephalitis (JE), and another 175 cases since June, numbers significantly higher than 2024 when 80 cases were reported, including 23 deaths.
Published: December 18, 2025.
https://outbreaknewstoday.substack.com/p/nepal-reports-sharp-rise-in-japanese
Cytomegalovirus Breakthrough Could Lead to New Treatments
New antibody design blocks cytomegalovirus from hiding from the immune system and could lead to safer, more effective treatments for vulnerable patients. Researchers at Texas Biologics at The University of Texas at Austin, working with scientists internationally, have made an important discovery that could improve treatment of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a common but overlooked virus that poses serious risks to vulnerable populations, including people with compromised immune systems.
Published: December 15, 2025.
Press Release: Sanofi to acquire Dynavax, adding a marketed adult hepatitis B vaccine and phase 1/2 shingles candidate to the pipeline.
Sanofi announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Dynavax Technologies Corporation (Dynavax), a publicly traded vaccines company with a marketed adult hepatitis B vaccine (HEPLISAV-B®) and differentiated shingles vaccine candidate.
Published: December 24, 2025.
CDC: Measles Cases in 2025. As of December 23, 2025, a total of 2,012 confirmed measles cases were reported in the United States.
Among these, 1,988 measles cases were reported by 44 jurisdictions: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, New York State, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. A total of 24 measles cases were reported among international visitors to the United States. There have been 50 outbreaks reported in 2025, and 87% of confirmed cases (1,760 of 2,012) are outbreak-associated. For comparison, 16 outbreaks were reported during 2024 and 69% of cases (198 of 285) were outbreak-associated.
Published: December 24, 2025.
https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/index.html
Sudan’s Darfur grapples with severe measles outbreak amid ongoing violence
MSF official tells Al Jazeera South Darfur hospital ‘overwhelmed’ by rapid increase in measles cases. The outbreak of measles, a vaccine-preventable virus, comes as violence between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the western region of Darfur and neighbouring areas has surged in recent weeks. More than 100,000 people have fled their homes in el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State, after the RSF seized control of the city in late October after an 18-month siege.
Published: December 22, 2025.
WHO: World Malaria Report. Addressing inequity in the global malaria response.
Published: December 11, 2025.
https://www.who.int/teams/global-malaria-programme/reports/world-malaria-report-2024
WHO: Cambodia introduces lifesaving rotavirus vaccine nationwide to protect children from severe diarrheal disease.
The Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Cambodia announces the nationwide introduction of the rotavirus vaccine into the National Immunization Schedule, marking a significant milestone in protecting infants and young children from one of the leading causes of severe diarrhea and child mortality.
Published: December 10, 2025.
WHO: Statement on the antigen composition of COVID-19 vaccines.
The WHO Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19 Vaccine Composition (TAG-CO-VAC) held its twice-yearly decision-making meeting in December 2025 to review the evolution of SARS-CoV-2, the performance of currently approved COVID-19 vaccines and the implications for COVID-19 vaccine antigen composition.
Published: December 18, 2025.
https://www.who.int/news/item/18-12-2025-statement-on-the-antigen-composition-of-covid-19-vaccines.
WHO Rapid Risk Assessment – Chikungunya virus disease, Global v.1.
Through December 10, the world has seen more than 500,000 chikungunya cases worldwide, with almost 300,000 in the Americas region alone, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported in a risk assessment yesterday.
With a high degree of confidence, the WHO classified the risk of infection with chikungunya virus to be moderate worldwide, driven by widespread outbreaks across multiple WHO regions during the 2025 season including areas with previously low or no transmission.
Published: December 29, 2025.
https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/who-rapid-risk-assessment—chikungunya-virus–global-v.1
Scientific American: Whooping Cough Deaths Rise in U.S. as Surge in Infections Continues.
Whooping cough cases are sweeping in the U.S., with tens of thousands infected and at least 13 people dead from the bacterial infection this year. While the infection rate is lower than last year, it remains above typical prepandemic years, and the number of deaths has risen. As of December 20, the U.S. and its territories have seen 27,871 diagnosed cases of whooping cough so far this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last year at this time, the number was 41,922.
Published: December 30, 2025.
BBC: Children from struggling families to be offered jabs at home.
Young children from struggling families in some parts of England will be offered vaccinations at home to protect them from preventable diseases.
Published: January 1, 2026.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn407dyx24go.amp
WHO guidance on the use of licensed human influenza A(H5) vaccines for the interpandemic and emergence periods.
Published: December 19, 2025.
https://iris.who.int/items/6edd8e07-bdfc-46db-8550-9d49b8bee1bf/full
Nature News: Will mpox go global again? Research shows it’s evolving in curious ways.
Analyses of monkeypox virus clades currently in circulation provide clues to how the virus managed to spread worldwide in 2022 — and how it might go global again.
Published: January 8, 2026.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-04154-6
GAVI: Pilot programme massively boosts hepatitis B “birth dose” vaccination in Nigeria’s Delta state.
The hepatitis B “birth dose” protects newborns from chronic, liver-killing infection, but the jab’s 24-hour window of opportunity leaves little room for logistical inefficiency. A new project in Delta State may have cracked the timeliness code.
Published: December 19, 2025.
Independent expert group to review HPV vaccine evidence after US recommendation change.
An independent vaccine advisory group said on Thursday it will conduct a scientific evidence review of a vaccine used to prevent cervical and other cancers that U.S. health officials this week said should only be given as a single dose, contrary to the shot’s FDA approval.
Published: January 8, 2026.
Oxford Vaccine Group: Ambitious research aims to develop multivalent vaccines to protect against multiple deadly filoviruses.
Scientists at the University of Oxford, in collaboration with partners, will spearhead the development of new vaccines that aim to provide comprehensive protection against multiple lethal filoviruses, including Ebola virus, Sudan virus, Bundibugyo virus, and Marburg virus.
Published: January 8, 2026.
Methodological framework for estimating the value of combination vaccines.
the value of combination vaccines can be quantified across four domains: reduced tangible and intangible costs for caregivers (including time, travel, and injection burden), operational efficiencies for health systems, the opportunity cost of limited slots in vaccination schedules, and the benefits of more streamlined schedules overall.
Published: January 7, 2026.
How effective is the flu shot this year? New report shows promising results.
While the new findings are encouraging, “vaccines won’t do any good if people don’t get them,” one expert said. Flu is surging across most of the U.S. But, amid an early, harsh season, there is a glimmer of promising news: The flu shot may be more effective than experts predicted.
Published: January 7, 2025.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna252659
India stopped polio 15 years ago; now it can end polio everywhere.
For decades, many doubted whether polio could ever be eliminated from India. The obstacles were immense: A population exceeding one billion, widespread poverty, poor sanitation, unsafe drinking water, malnutrition, and vast, hardtoreach communities. Delivering vaccines repeatedly and reliably to every household seemed like an impossible task. What followed, however, was one of the most ambitious public health mobilizations in modern history.
Published: January 13, 2026.
India: Nipah virus cases reported in West Bengal, according to media reports.
India media report two cases of human Nipah virus infection in West Bengal, in eastern India. The patients are nurses and have been admitted to a Kolkata hospital. “The health condition of both of them remains extremely critical. They are still in a coma and admitted to the ICCU,” according to an official of the health department.
Published: January 14, 2026.
https://outbreaknewstoday.substack.com/p/india-nipah-virus-cases-reported
South Carolina reports 124 new measles cases as outbreak grows.
At least 124 new measles cases have been reported in South Carolina since last Friday, health officials said. This brings the total number of cases in the outbreak to 434. There are currently over 400 people in quarantine.
Published: January 13, 2026.
Overviewing Emerging Evidence of Vaccines, Dementia Risk, and Pathogen Protection:
Pierre Tariot, MD. At CTAD 2025, the director of Banner Alzheimer’s Institute discussed emerging epidemiologic and translational evidence suggesting that certain vaccines may confer protection against dementia.
Published: January 16, 2026.
