Polio this week as of 19 July 2017
The Polio Research Committee (PRC) issued a call for research proposals, to support the implementation of the Polio Eradication & Endgame Strategic Plan, with particular focus on: vaccine schedule immunogenicity; surveillance; product development on innovative IPV formulations or administration techniques; epidemiology/virology; monitoring and evaluation; and, basic immunology. The deadline for submission of proposals is 6 October 2017. Submission guidelines and procedures are available here.
Animations from WHO on the Polio Surveillance System, Reaching Every last Child and Responding to a Polio Outbreak have won the Innovation (Screen) category of the EVCOM Clarion Awards, for offering a fresh and unique way of engaging audiences in projects concerning the environment, health, education, social welfare and sustainability.
Summary of newly-reported viruses this week: Afghanistan – one new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) isolated from an acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) case and one new WPV1-positive environmental sample; Syria – four new circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) isolated from AFP cases. See country-specific section below, for more details.