University College Dublin (UCD) is leading MpoxVax AFRIVAC, a new €1.3 million international consortium that aims to rapidly deploy technology and develop new knowledge to end the current Mpox outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and surrounding countries. Professor Patrick Mallon, Director of the UCD Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research (CEPHR) and Professor of Microbial Diseases at UCD School of Medicine, is the Lead Coordinator of the consortium and Professor Bruce Kirenga from the Makerere University Lung Institute in Kampala, Uganda is the Scientific Coordinator.
MpoxVax AFRIVAC ( Expanding a prospective, clinical trial examining the immune response of participants receiving Modified Vaccinia Ankara vaccine to Africa ) will expand a trial exploring the effectiveness of Mpox vaccination that is currently running in Ireland to additional countries in Africa that are affected by an ongoing outbreak of Mpox infection. The consortium brings leading experts from 6 Partner institutions in Ireland, DRC, Tanzania, Uganda and the UK together to tackle this public health emergency. Funding for the 30-month initiative has been granted by the European Commission's European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (Global Health EDCTP3).
The Mpox epidemic in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is accelerating at an alarming rate, and a significant number of cases have been reported beyond DRC's borders. The surge has led the World Health Organisation.