Alash’le Abimiku, the executive director of the International Centre of Excellence, has said that similarities among different Lassa virus strains offer hope for a single vaccine to protect against the disease across West Africa.

The IRCE is a centre of excellence established in 2016 by the Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria.

Ms Abimiku disclosed this in an interview on Sunday in Abuja, ahead of the institute’s third Annual Scientific Symposium, which will take place on Monday and Tuesday.

Ms Abimiku, while speaking on the institute’s focus areas in tackling infectious diseases prevalent in the region, said the centre had conducted a study on both the virus and the rodents that transmit Lassa fever to better understand how strains vary across states and countries.

“One of the first studies we did was to understand how the strains are changing. We also studied the rodent, the rat that carries this virus, its characteristics and behaviours in Bauchi, Edo, and other states. This helps us determine if the strains are the same or different,” Ms Abimiku explained.

According to her, although the Lassa fever virus exhibits minor mutations, results so far indicate that the strains across Nigeria are similar.

“That is good for vaccine development because if you make one vaccine, it can cut across,” she said.

“According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), symptoms often include fever, general weakness, headaches, sore throat, chest pain, nausea, and, in severe cases, bleeding from the gums, nose, or gastrointestinal tract.

”The disease is endemic in Nigeria, with cases reported annually in multiple states, particularly Edo, Ondo, and Bauchi. Case fatality rates can reach up to 15–20 per cent among hospitalised patients, making it a major public health concern,” Ms Abimiku said.

She said the fact that strains of the virus in Nigeria are largely similar is significant, as it increases the possibility that a single vaccine could provide effective protection across different regions of the country and potentially across West Africa, where the disease is also endemic.

Ms Abimiku revealed that several candidate vaccine trials were ongoing across West Africa, including Nigeria, Liberia, and Senegal, adding that findings from Nigeria’s research would be crucial in shaping the effectiveness of these trials.

She pointed out that IHVN would continue to ensure its studies meet the highest international standards, ensuring that their outcomes have global relevance. On HIV/AIDS, she noted that while research had slowed due to the suspension of U.S. government funding, efforts were still ongoing.

“Our research on HIV-AIDS has been slowed down a little bit because of  funding. Talk to our chief operating officer, he has been pushing different governments and different organisations on why they should begin to fund research that we do so that such disruptions do not affect the work we do,” Ms Abimiku said.

She said that once a safe and effective vaccine is developed, it could be a game-changer in reducing the annual toll of Lassa fever in Nigeria and the West African sub-region.

In week 34, the NCDC confirmed three new cases of Lassa fever, bringing the total number of deaths in 2025 to 160. The three confirmed cases were reported in Edo and Ondo states, spanning from August 18 to 24.

The figure is a drop from the five cases recorded the previous week.

So far this year, Nigeria recorded 857 confirmed cases and 160 deaths, representing a case fatality rate of 18.7 per cent, higher than the 17.1 per cent recorded in the same period in 2024.

According to the report, 21 states across 106 LGAs have logged at least one confirmed case, with Ondo, Bauchi, Edo, Taraba, and Ebonyi accounting for 90 per cent of infections.

The most affected age group remains 21 to 30 years. 

(NAN)