Israel says its pharmaceutical company, SciGen, has developed Sci-B-Vac, the world’s only commercially available third-generation vaccine against the dreaded disease, hepatitis B virus (HBV).

The newly developed vaccine is a step towards combating the threat of hepatitis B virus in children, a statement issued in Accra by Ms Mina Okuru, Public Diplomacy Coordinator, Embassy of Israel, and copied to Ghana News Agency, said on Thursday.

According to the statement, though 167 countries now vaccinate at birth, HBV is up to 100 times more infectious than AIDS, a major global health problem causing more than one million deaths every year from liver diseases.

It said the introduction of Sci-B-Vac offers the most effective and cost-efficient solution to combating HBV anywhere.

The statement quoted SciGen’s Chief Executive Officer Michal Ben-Attar as saying the development of the vaccine was based on advanced biotechnology that seeks to eliminate problems inherent in first-generation and second-generation HBV vaccines.

It said since its introduction, virtually every Israeli newborn has received Sci-B-Vac, a practice that has significantly reduced HBV incidence in Israel.

A current study at Hadassah University Medical Centre in Jerusalem indicates that Sci-B-Vac given to infants born already infected stops the disease from developing, the statement said.

According to the statement the world’s only commercially available third-generation vaccine against HBV is also approved for use in Hong Kong, Philippines, India, Vietnam, Georgia and Central Africa.

With regulatory approvals in the United States and other countries expected in the near future, SciGen Chief Executive Officer is seeking partners willing to help get the effective and cost-efficient vaccine to places where the rates of infection are especially high.