The world’s first dengue vaccine, Dengvaxia, won regulatory approval in Mexico, raising hopes that it could prevent more than 100 deaths there a year and eventually perhaps millions around the world. Globally, dengue is the fastest-growing mosquito-borne disease, with as many as 400 million people infected every year, according to the World Health Organization.

The Dengvaxia vaccine is being manufactured by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi. The company has requested regulatory approval in 20 countries across Asia and Latin America, but Mexico was the first to give it the green light.

Dengvaxia is a live virus vaccine consisting of an attenuated yellow fever virus genetically engineered to produce proteins from the dengue virus and stimulate the body’s immune system to make antibodies to those proteins. The vaccine works against all four subtypes of the dengue virus, but better for some subtypes than others.

Mexico’s National Vaccination Council will meet to decide whether Dengvaxia will be among the vaccines the government distributes without cost, the head of the health regulatory agency, Mikel Arriola, told AFP. Mexican health authorities estimate the vaccine could prevent 8,000 hospitalizations and 104 deaths per year.

Did You Know???

• Also known as breakbone fever, dengue can cause high temperature and intense joint and muscle pain. In severe cases, it causes hemorrhagic fever, which is marked by bleeding and shock and can be fatal.
• A viral disease that is transmitted by mosquitoes, the number of cases has been increasing sharply and the disease has been spreading out of its traditional home in developing countries in the tropics and subtropics.