Obama-Rousseff discuss concerns over Zika virus

The US and Brazil have agreed to work together to develop a vaccine against the Zika virus which is spreading rapidly across the Americas, reports Sky News.

 

During a phone call on Friday evening, US President Barack Obama and his Brazilian counterpart Dilma Rousseff discussed their "shared concerns" about the mosquito-borne disease, which has been linked to brain defects in babies. 

 

"The leaders agreed on the importance of collaborative efforts to deepen our knowledge, advance research, and accelerate work to develop better vaccines and other technologies to control the virus," the White House said in a statement.

 

Ms Rousseff's office said a high-level bilateral group would "develop a partnership in the production of vaccines and therapeutics".

 

It will be based on an existing cooperation agreement between Brazil's Butantan Institute of biomedical research and the US National Institutes of Health to develop a vaccine against dengue.

 

But no matter how fast they are able to act, scientists have warned that it could take years for a Zika vaccine to become available.