NIH identifies new funding in support of Valley Fever vaccine research, development

Following up on a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Notice of Special Interest from November that sought support for research into a Valley Fever vaccine, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently announced that additional funding avenues have been found.

Valley Fever is an infection caused by a fungus living in the soil of the southwestern U.S., as well as parts of Mexico and Central and South America. People can be exposed by breathing microscopic fungal spores from the air, although most never get sick. Even those who do often recover within weeks or a matter of months, but certain groups – which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), include those with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, diabetics, as well as those of Black and Filipino ancestry – are at higher risk for severe illness and require antifungal medication for treatment.

It can take up to three weeks after exposure for symptoms to even show, and once they do, they include things like: fatigue, cough, fever, shortness of breath, headache, night sweats, rashes, and muscle aches. The disease can also affect pets. However, those who have had such an infection will likely gain some measure of immunity afterward, and repeat cases are rare, according to the CDC. Low testing rates have likely caused the illness to go underreported, but as of 2019, the CDC confirmed 20,003 cases in the United States.

Given that the cause is something common in the environments in which it is present, though, those at high risk can find it difficult to avoid exposure.

U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) praised the developments, which will offer funding availability to researchers and scientists advancing the R&D of new vaccines.

“This could deliver additional federal research dollars to the Valley Fever Institute at Kern Medical,” McCarthy said. “This announcement also follows provisions I secured in last year’s appropriations package directing the NIH to continue prioritizing Valley Fever vaccine development and complements my continued work with Valley Fever Task Force Co-Chair Rep. David Schweikert to prioritize research of diagnostic tools and treatments for this disease at NIH.”

Earlier this year, McCarthy and Schweikert pushed a provision into the Fiscal Year 2022 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act that required NIH to submit a 10-year strategic plan to Congress on how to develop a Valley Fever vaccine by 2031. As of September, NIAID had already submitted a Strategic Plan for Research to Develop a Valley Fever Vaccine to Congress.