Industry shifts focus to a new portfolio targeting high-incidence diseases in Brazil
Following the global race for Covid-19 immunization, the pharmaceutical industry is now focusing on developing vaccines for diseases with high incidence rates in Brazil. Investments announced in recent months by multinational companies and foundations in the country, including the Instituto Butantan, total at least R$3.4 billion.
One of Butantan's main priorities is dengue, which saw a surge in cases last summer and has already reached epidemic levels in parts of Brazil in 2025, even before the seasonal peak in March. Other transmissible diseases under focus include bronchiolitis in infants, caused by the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and pneumococcal diseases such as meningitis, which are caused by bacteria.
On February 25, Instituto Butantan announced plans to produce a single-dose dengue vaccine through a technology transfer agreement with China's WuXi Biologics, involving an investment of R$1.2 billion. According to the Ministry of Health, the vaccine will be available starting in 2026 for people aged 2 to 59, with an expected production of 60 million doses next year.
The first dengue vaccine, developed by Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda, was made available in Brazil in 2024 through the public healthcare system (SUS) for children aged 10 to 14. Flavio Perrotti, head of vaccine business at Takeda Brasil, said Butantan's new vaccine would not affect the company's revenue from its own dengue vaccine, Qdenga.
He said the SUS will need multiple vaccine options to meet high demand across the country. “We remain available to the Ministry of Health to support the expansion of dengue vaccination and the fight against the disease,” Mr. Perrotti told Valor. He added that Takeda is set to deliver nine million vaccine doses by the end of the year but declined to comment on whether supply contracts have been secured for 2026.
In September, Takeda also proposed a partnership with the federal government through Fiocruz to manufacture the vaccine in Brazil, following a technology transfer model similar to the one established between Butantan and multinational pharmaceutical companies.
Last year, Butantan announced investments of R$386 million to build a new vaccine manufacturing plant at its São Paulo headquarters. Saulo Simoni Nacif, Butantan Foundation's executive director, said the goal of these investments is to meet domestic demand while also entering the international market.
Vaccine partnerships
One organization already interested in purchasing surplus production is the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which is affiliated with the World Health Organization (WHO). PAHO is considering acquiring Butantan's chikungunya vaccine, targeting a virus transmitted by the same mosquito that spreads dengue. “Once the SUS is supplied, exporting and competing internationally would be beneficial for both Butantan and Brazil. It would also improve economies of scale, ultimately helping SUS with cost reductions,” Mr. Nacif told Valor. He noted that investments planned for the next three years could reach R$3 billion.
Beyond mosquito-borne tropical diseases, Butantan's new investment plan includes an RSV vaccine, developed in partnership with Pfizer, to protect infants from bronchiolitis. The vaccine, Abrysvo, is intended for pregnant women, ideally between 24 and 36 weeks of gestation, so that antibodies are passed to the baby before birth.
According to the Ministry of Health, investments in this vaccine will total R$1.26 billion by 2027. On February 18, the SUS added Pfizer's RSV vaccine to the National Immunization Program (PNI). Until then, the vaccine, which launched in Brazil in September, was only available in private clinics, with doses imported from Pfizer's U.S. plant. The suggested retail price for the vaccine in private clinics is R$1,200 but can reach R$1,600, reflecting a tax burden of approximately 32%, according to Pfizer.
Pfizer Brasil's medical director, Adriana Ribeiro, said public awareness of maternal vaccination remains low. A survey by the Institute for Research and Consultancy Intelligence (IPEC), commissioned by Pfizer, found that 62% of pregnant women believe maternal vaccination does not benefit newborns. However, none of the respondents expressed opposition to vaccination during pregnancy. “We don't see rejection or aversion to vaccines in this group,” she said.
Ms. Ribeiro also highlighted access as a barrier to vaccination, in addition to limited awareness of immunization benefits. UNICEF, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, launched a campaign to vaccinate children in schools and remote communities.
Sanofi Brasil's general manager of vaccines, Guillaume Pierart, said the rise of anti-vaccine movements is not the primary reason for declining vaccination coverage in Brazil. “Sanofi's first major milestone was developing a meningitis vaccine, which is now distributed to 80 million Brazilians through a partnership with Fiocruz. Anti-vaccine groups exist, but they are a loud minority. Research shows that several factors contribute to lower vaccination rates, including convenience, time constraints, financial barriers to reaching vaccination sites, and a lack of awareness about disease severity,” he told Valor.
Public awareness
Like Pfizer, Sanofi recently expanded its vaccine portfolio in Brazil by launching Beyfortus, an RSV immunization with a different mechanism of action. Unlike traditional vaccines, which stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies in the days following administration, Beyfortus uses monoclonal antibodies that provide immediate protection by injecting ready-made antibodies into the infant's body. Mr. Pierart added that out of Sanofi's 72 products, 54 are sold in Brazil, with production at its factories in Campinas and Suzano, both in São Paulo.
MSD also highlighted the need to improve public awareness of vaccines last week during the launch of its “Março Lilás” (Purple March) campaign, a month dedicated to cervical cancer awareness. The company supplies human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines to the SUS, which has offered the immunization to children and adolescents since 2014.
MSD also sells a private-market version of the vaccine that protects against nine HPV strains, compared to the four strains covered by the public version. The company argues that everyone should be vaccinated, as natural HPV infections do not provide long-term immunity. Around 99% of cervical cancer cases are caused by HPV, which is also linked to cancers of the larynx, mouth, anus, and penis. “Around 90 million Brazilians have yet to be vaccinated against HPV. These cancers are preventable. Australia has already eradicated cervical cancer through vaccination,” said Fernando Cerino, MSD Brasil's private vaccine director.
Butantan is not the only institution forming public-private partnerships for vaccine technology transfers. Sinovac, the Chinese company known in Brazil for producing CoronaVac during the pandemic, has signed an agreement with the Paraná Institute of Technology (TECPAR) to begin domestic production of vaccines for rabies, chickenpox, polio, and pneumococcal diseases.
Sinovac will invest $100 million in research and development for these vaccines, which will be manufactured at TECPAR's facilities in Maringá, Paraná. Cintia Lucci, Sinovac's institutional director in Brazil, said public-sector partnerships are a priority for the company. “Tecpar has invested in a technology park in Paraná, providing infrastructure, while Sinovac is bringing in expertise and teams to support vaccine development, certification, and regulatory approval with Anvisa,” she said.