Privately owned vaccine developer Hawaii Biotech Inc has joined the race to produce a vaccine for the mosquito-borne Zika virus, a fast-spreading infection which has been linked to severe birth defects in babies. The company initiated a formal program to test a Zika vaccine last fall, as the virus began to gain traction in Brazil, said Chief Executive Dr. Elliot Parks. The World Health Organization (WHO) has said the Zika virus is “spreading explosively” and could infect as many as 4 million people in the Americas.
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Hawaii Biotech joins race to develop Zika vaccine
