Vaccine Innovation for Dengue, Chikungunya, Zika and Yellow Fever: Accelerating Global Development Agenda and Partnerships in Post-COVID Era

Vaccines for emerging arboviral diseases that should be a global priority, in a combined strategy with vector control, are being neglected, affecting particularly the poorest populations worldwide. The object of our investigation is to identify the breakthroughs in vaccine innovation for four leading emerging neglected arboviral diseases (Dengue, Chikungunya, Zika and Yellow Fever). From this perspective we examine vaccine patent document applicants by stage of technological development of different vaccine platforms, including the different partnerships established by these applicants.

From a patent landscape approach, we defined  methodological strategies for a hybrid search in two different databases (Derwent Innovation Index and Cortellis Drug Discovery Intelligence) that allowed us to identify the stages of technological development of the vaccines to prevent/treat these four arboviral diseases, making it possible to identify the successful ones that go to clinical trials and the partnerships among private and public institutions, which promote continuity of the development/production process.

Our results confirm these gaps for Dengue, Chikungunya, Zika and Yellow Fever vaccines, with only 13% of these vaccines still under active development and prospect to reach the final stages of development. They also indicate that, in spite of this constraint, innovative platforms such as RNA-based vaccines are increasingly being used to prevent/ treat these diseases. 

We propose urgently strengthening funding and incentive mechanisms in a Global Strategic Plan supported by new business models and community participation to accelerate vaccine development for these four neglected arboviral diseases, a dramatic and concerning global issue in post-COVID-19 era.