Chikungunya vaccines: advances in the development and prospects for marketing approval

Abstract

Chikungunya fever is an acute infectious disease caused by the mosquito-borne Chikungunya virus (CHIKV). In the last decades, cases of the disease have been reported in more than 100 countries; therefore, CHIKV presents a global public health problem. CHIKV genotypes have limited antigenic diversity, and documented reinfection is very rare. Hence, a vaccine could prevent infection and potential disability, as well as reduce the epidemic spread of CHIKV in the population.The aim of the study was to review approaches to the development of preventive vaccines against CHIKV, evaluate promising vaccine candidates in preclinical or clinical development stages, and analyse perspectives and challenges of bringing these vaccines to the pharmaceutical market.According to the literature reviewed, both traditional and modern platforms are used in the development of CHIKV vaccines, which has been ongoing for several decades. Each platform has its advantages and limitations. The most popular platforms are live attenuated vaccines and vaccines with viral vector constructs. To date, about 25 vaccine candidates have successfully passed through preclinical studies, and more than 7 vaccine candidates have progressed to various phases of clinical studies. The preventive medicinal products that have reached the clinical development stage include 4 live attenuated vaccines, 1 inactivated vaccine, 1 vaccine containing virus-like particles, and 1 mRNA vaccine. All 7 candidates have demonstrated cross-protection against multiple genotypes of CHIKV at the level of either preclinical in vivo studies and/or clinical in vitro studies. The research continues, and this shows that not only the scientific community but also health systems are interested in bringing effective CHIKV vaccines to the pharmaceutical market.