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Brussels – The European Commission announced, on Friday, that the Horizon 2020 funding programme is financing projects worth €45 million in research to combat the outbreak of the Zika virus disease and other emerging infections transmitted by mosquitoes.
This investment will support research on treatments, diagnostics and vaccines, as well as better risk assessment for Zika.
“This funding will be a major boost to the international effort to stop the outbreak of the Zika virus disease and protect new-borns as well as adults,” Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, Carlos Moedas, told the press.
He added that “this research is an example of how we can mobilise funding quickly to face major new threats, and how we can lead a major research effort on a global scale.”
The majority of the funding (€30 million) will go to three research consortia: ZikaPLAN (€11 million), coordinated by the Umeå University in Sweden; ZIKAction (€7 million), coordinated by thePENTA Foundation in Italy; and ZikAlliance (€12 million), coordinated by INSERM in France.
An additional €5 million will support the ZIKAVAX consortium that aims to develop a safe and effective vaccine against the infection. Finally, a €10 million grant will go to the INFRAVEC2 project, coordinated by Institut Pasteur, which will provide access to facilities for research into insects that transmit infectious diseases.
