The University of Oxford has launched the world's first Phase II clinical trial of a Nipah virus vaccine candidate.

The trial is being conducted in Bangladesh in partnership with icddr,b and is funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). It will evaluate the safety and immune response of the ChAdOx1 NipahB vaccine in a region that faces recurring Nipah outbreaks.

According to an icddr,b press release today, the trial began earlier this month and will enrol 306 healthy participants aged 18 to 55.

The vaccine was developed by scientists at the University of Oxford's Pandemic Sciences Institute. The first-in-human trials of the ChAdOx1 NipahB vaccine began in January 2024 in Oxford, led by the Oxford Vaccine Group.

Fifty-one volunteers aged 18 to 55 have safely completed one year of follow-up, with results expected in the coming months.

Nipah virus, part of the same viral family as measles, is considered a global research priority by the WHO due to its pandemic potential. The disease can be fatal in up to 75 percent of cases.

First detected in Malaysia, Nipah now causes small outbreaks almost every year in Bangladesh and occasionally in India.

Since 1998, 750 cases have been recorded, including 415 deaths.

The virus is carried by fruit bats, and most infections occur from drinking contaminated date palm sap. It can also spread through an intermediate animal host or from person to person, including among healthcare workers.

Early symptoms include fever, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, and sore throat, which can rapidly progress to acute encephalitis, pneumonia, and severe respiratory illness.