Zika spread adds urgency to UH race for vaccine

Infectious disease persists as one of the most worrisome global issues. The Zika virus, the latest scare, has sounded the alarm for its potential to infect pregnant women and cause catastrophic birth defects.

As an island state straddling travel routes crossing the globe, Hawaii is even more vulnerable. As counterintuitive as this sounds, bringing the infectious agent to the islands under strictly controlled conditions ultimately would provide the best public protection.

State officials have been slow to take necessary action toward this end, but fortunately, on Tuesday did so at last. The months ahead will prove critical in the pursuit of a vaccine that could rid the population of this fearful threat.

The state Board of Agriculture voted unanimously Tuesday to allow University of Hawaii scientists to import the Zika virus to enable vaccine trials to be conducted. This will permit the researchers to take part in the search by companies and scientists around the world for a means of controlling the virus, lowering the risk of a pandemic.

The UH team has sought a permit to import the Zika virus for seven years, but inexplicably, the state Department of Agriculture failed to act until department staff issued a report that urged the board to give its approval. That department is responsible for seeing that any imports pose no risk to the population or environment.

The permit application outlined in detail the protocols for bringing in the virus specimens, which would arrive in Hawaii in special biohazard packaging, sent via World Courier or FedEx, according to the application documents.

The staff report lists 22 conditions that would govern the import and the vaccine research, which is expected to be carried out on mice and possibly guinea pigs. The test animals’ handling is spelled out as well.

For example, the report specifies that the virus container be brought to the Biosciences Building and Animal Biosafety Level 2 facility on Ilalo Street, at the UH John A. Burns School of Medicine. UH cannot sell or transfer the biohazardous material, according to the terms for approval.

Among other conditions, the researchers must destroy the viral material after its part in the studies is completed. Any change in the laboratory protocols for handling the virus requires first sending written notification to the Plant Quarantine Branch of the Health Department.

Health officials have warned that states such as Hawaii and the Gulf Coast states are vulnerable as summertime — mosquito season — begins, because that’s how the disease is spread.

This is only the first hurdle for the UH scientists, who still must secure funding for the vaccine research. Research team principals have applied for grants from the National Institutes of Health and other agencies and should hear back about their funding requests in about three months.

There’s some movement in the right direction, where funding is concerned.

After a push from U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz and others, the Senate approved $1.1 billion in emergency funding to fight the spread of the Zika virus. Congress must be vigilant to make sure resources equal to the challenge remain available.

Schatz correctly argued that Zika presents a crisis, a threat to public health. Emergency funds will ensure that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is equipped to protect Hawaii and communities nationwide.

A handful of Zika cases have been confirmed in Hawaii, but all the illnesses were contracted outside the U.S., according to the CDC.

But that’s no reason to feel complacent: Mosquitoes here could become carriers of the virus by biting an infected person. The state has seen this happen with dengue fever and cannot afford to take risks with this disease, which has been linked to cases of microcephaly in infants, a severe neurological disorder. The CDC has confirmed that linkage.

And that underscores why the state, which lagged for far too long, made the correct decision in moving aggressively to take on this disease. There’s no longer a moment to waste.