Bloomberg reports that “Sanofi will partner with the U.S Walter Reed Army Institute of Research to develop a Zika vaccine candidate using an inactivated version of the virus.”  

“Walter Reed, a military biomedical research institute within the Department of Defense, will transfer its purified inactivated virus vaccine technology to Sanofi’s vaccines division. The Paris-based drugmaker will be responsible for handling human trials, improving production yields, and creating a clinical and regulatory strategy, according to a statement Wednesday.”  

“Sanofi is the only major pharmaceutical company that has been actively pushing to develop a vaccine for Zika, a mosquito-borne virus that has been spreading across the Americas and is a major threat mainly to pregnant women, as it can trigger severe birth defects. The partnership will open the door for a broader collaboration with the U.S. government, Sanofi said.”