Health chiefs revealed today that British scientists are leading the development of a vaccine to halt the next deadly pandemic within 100 days of its outbreak.
With the unveiling of the new top-secret super lab at Porton Down, it aims to boost pandemic preparedness and develop prototype vaccines to tackle ‘Disease X’ when it hits.
It works with academics and industry and is the only site in the UK equipped to make a vaccine from start to finish.
But what is disease X? And why are British scientists working on a vaccine for an unknown disease?
Here MailOnline explains everything you need to know.
The Vaccine Development and Evaluation Center (VDEC) (pictured) is based at the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) science and defense technology campus Porton Down, near Salisbury in Wiltshire
In 2018, WHO identified nine priority diseases (listed) that pose the greatest risk to public health. They were considered the most risky due to lack of treatments or their ability to cause a pandemic
Early clinical trials are underway for what could be the world’s first vaccine against Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, a virus spread by tick bites
What is disease X?
Disease X represents a hypothetical, currently unknown pathogen.
The World Health Organization adopted the temporary name in 2018 to ensure their schedule was flexible enough to adapt to a disease.
In its list of nine priority diseases, the UN agency says: “Disease X represents the knowledge that a serious international epidemic could be caused by a pathogen not currently known to cause disease in humans.”
Following today’s announcement of Porton Down, Professor Dame Jenny Harries, the head of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said: ‘What we’re trying to do here is make sure we’re prepared.
“So that if we have a new Disease X, a new pathogen, we’ve done as much of that work as possible ahead of time.
“Hopefully we can prevent it (a pandemic). But if that’s not possible and we have to respond, then we’ve already started developing vaccines and therapies to crack it.’
What is most likely to become Disease X?
For decades, scientists have been warning that bird flu is the most likely contender to cause the next pandemic.
Experts say this is because of the threat of recombination – with high levels of human flu increasing the risk of a human also becoming infected with avian flu.
Others have long speculated that disease X could more generally come from zoonotic transmission – an animal virus or a bacteria that jumps onto humans.
Some have even warned that Disease X could be sparked by a biological mutation, accident or terror attack, taking the world by surprise and spreading rapidly.
In September 2019, the now-defunct Public Health England also reported that increasing antibiotic resistance of bacteria, can also turn into a potential Disease X.
More than 200 scientists work on more than 100 projects in the top-secret laboratory at Porton Down, run by the British government.
These include surveillance and potential vaccine development for diseases such as tuberculosis and monkeypox.
However, top scientists working at the site confirmed today that they are preparing the tools that would be needed if the H5N1 avian flu strain were to emerge in humans.
The largest-ever bird flu outbreak is currently sweeping the world, raising fears it could soon spread to humans.
While it’s not known to be easily transmitted between humans, mutations in the virus that facilitate mammal-to-mammal transmission could change that, some experts fear.
Earlier this year, British scientists also modeled worst-case scenarios with the virus killing up to one in 20 people it infects, if it ever manages to take off in humans.
But officials said the figure was for “planning purposes” and not a forecast.
Fewer than 900 human cases of H5N1 have ever been recorded worldwide. It kills up to half of everyone who becomes infected.
The new superlab, to which the Mail was invited last week, is tuned to work with the world’s deadliest living viruses (File image)
Who helps prepare for Disease X?
Countries around the world have pledged a total of $1.5bn (£1.15bn) to help scientists prepare for Disease X.
The UK government has pledged £160 million ($210 million), in addition to pledges from the US, Japan, Germany, Australia and Norway.
The Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust have also invested in research to tackle Disease X.
The creation of a new lab space at Porton Down has increased capacity, giving scientists more resources to focus on the viruses that appear to pose the clearest danger.
The number of scientists working on vaccines at the UKHSA’s Porton Down site has grown by 50 per cent since 2020, while there has also been increased investment in technology.
British scientists can now run tests for a range of diseases on 3,000 samples each week, compared to 100 before Covid hit.
Why are British scientists working on a vaccine for an unknown disease?
Scientists say global migration leads to increasing threats as humans and animals move closer together.
Global warming also creates the risk of pathogens transmitted by vectors such as mosquitoes and ticks emerging in previously unheard-of places, including the UK.
Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, Chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization, said: ‘We know that climate change stimulates the emergence of new bacteria and viruses in our environment.
“And we also have urbanization. Because people move more into the living environment of animals, we increase the risk of that happening.’
He told Sky News: ‘As we saw with Covid, people being close together make it much more likely to spread. We are currently about 8 billion people on the planet.
“And in the next 30 years, we’re going to be over 10 billion.”
Porton Down is also one of the few laboratories in the world that has the facilities to study powerful viruses and bacteria, such as Ebola.
Early clinical trials are taking place for what could be a world-first vaccine against Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever.
Spread by tick bites, the virus kills about a third of those infected.
The disease occurs in Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East and Asia – and could spread further due to climate change.