Japan moves to bolster vaccine R & D after COVID-19 exposed startling weakness

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the feeble state of Japan’s vaccine research and development capabilities. Only now, for example, are Japanese regulators considering approval of the country’s first homegrown COVID-19 vaccines, months after many less advanced nations developed their own shots. Determined to catch up, Japan is ramping up a 1.1 trillion yen ($8.5 billion) initiative that aims to give Japan the capability to develop a vaccine for a new virus in 100 days, a goal being adopted by many countries. That “very ambitious” push “is definitely a welcome development,” especially given that it will give neglected infectious diseases special attention, says Diane Griffin, a virologist at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health. The funding, first outlined by the government in 2021, is now starting to flow to basic and applied research, clinical trials of vaccine candidates, and an expansion of industry’s capacity to manufacture vaccines. But the initiative faces formidable challenges. Japanese scientists, including some receiving and administering the grants, worry it will not address a dearth of stable research jobs, which has deterred young scientists from entering key research fields. And it’s not clear whether the government is committed to sustaining funding after the first tranche expires in March 2027. The decline of Japan’s vaccine sector was years in the making. “For the last 15 or 20 years, funding for infe...
Source: Science of Aging Knowledge Environment - Category: Geriatrics Source Type: research