Total Investment of Approx. USD 6.8 Million in Product Development for Malaria, NTDs and Other Emerging & Re-emerging Infectious Diseases Such as Ebola Disease

EmitenTrust.com - TOKYO, Oct. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund announced today a total investment of approximately JPY 1.06 billion (USD 6.8 million¹) in nine R&D projects for the development of drugs, vaccines and diagnostics for malaria, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and emerging & re-emerging infectious diseases such as Ebola disease. ² 

Investment of approx. JPY 450 million (USD 2.9 million¹) for Clinical Validation, Regulatory Approval and Programmatic Launch of Rapid Diagnostic Test for Trachoma

Trachoma is an NTD caused by infection with the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. It remains a public health problem and is responsible for causing blindness or visual impairment in approximately 1.9 million people globally. Currently, nearly 92 million people live in endemic areas and remain at risk of blindness due to trachoma³.

Trachoma control programs currently rely on Mass Drug Administration (MDA) of antibiotics. This creates a critical demand for a point-of-care rapid diagnostic test (RDT) to guide timely and accurate field-level decision-making on when to start or stop MDA.

The GHIT Fund has decided to invest approximately 450 million yen in a project to develop a rapid diagnostic test for trachoma, led by Drugs and Diagnostics for Tropical Diseases (DDTD), Medical & Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd. (MBL), The Carter Center, and Big Eye Diagnostics, Inc. Supported by the GHIT Fund since 2024, the project aims to establish a diagnostic test that fully complies with the WHO Target Product Profile (TPP). This new investment will further accelerate clinical evaluations, regulatory approvals, and programmatic launch.

The GHIT Fund Invests Approximately JPY 210 Million (USD 1.3 million¹) to Meet Urgent Need for Rapid Diagnostic Development for Ebola Disease

Ever since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on May 17, 2026 (Japan time) in response to the outbreak of Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, the GHIT Fund has focused its support on product development for rapid diagnostic technologies and point-of-care (POC) testing for filovirus infections, including Ebola disease.

An outbreak with over 4,500 deaths as of October 21, 2026, has been reported in the DRC⁴. Rapid diagnosis is essential to prevent transmission, and the GHIT Fund has decided to invest a total of approximately JPY 210 million (USD 1.3 million¹) in three projects for the rapid diagnosis of Ebola disease. For details, please refer to Appendix 1.

1) Development of a new RT-LAMP/nucleic acid chromatography diagnostic device for rapid screening of for the Bundibugyo virus led by Medical & Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd. and Nagasaki University in Japan.

2) Development and field investigation of a lateral flow immunoassay for the Ebola hemorrhagic fever Bundibugyo strain in the DRC led by Saitama University in Japan.

3) Development of a LAMP-based assay for detection of Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) led by Eiken Chemical Co. Ltd. in Japan.

In addition, the GHIT Fund will invest a total of approximately JPY 400 million (approx. USD 2.5 million¹) in the following five R&D projects. These include a project to develop a next-generation vaccine against Lassa fever, which is widespread in West Africa, as well as rapid antigen tests (RAT) for high-priority zoonotic pathogens, specifically the Nipah and Hendra viruses, which pose a risk of severe outbreaks with potential "Disease X" pandemic capacity. Investment will also cover product development for malaria and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), such as dengue fever, chikungunya, and Chagas disease.

1. Construct and formulation optimization and efficacy evaluation of a bivalent mRNA-lipid nanoparticle vaccine for Lassa virus led by the University of Osaka (Center for Advanced Modalities and Drug Delivery System [CAMaD], Research Institute for Microbial Diseases [RIMD], and Graduate School of Medicine [UOsaka Med]) and The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB).
   
   
   
   
2. Strategic high-performance immunoglobulins for epidemic and lethal diseases, and to develop a highly accurate rapid antigen test (RAT) for detecting Nipah virus (NiV) and Hendra virus (HeV) infections, both of which have the potential to cause severe outbreaks, led by PATH and iBody Inc.
   
   
   
   
3. Improving antimalarial potency of antisense oligonucleotides through bioinformatics and machine-learning algorithms led by Eisai Co., Ltd. and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV).
   
   
   
   
4. Innovative approaches to improve success rate in Chagas disease drug discovery led by Nagasaki University, Eisai Co., Ltd., Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative and University of Dundee.
   
   
   
   
5. Rapid whole-blood multiplex antigen test for serotype-specific dengue and chikungunya detection led by VisGene, Ltd., University of Miyazaki, Mahidol University, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos in Peru and Centro de Investigaciones Tecnologicas, Biomedicas y Medioambientales in Peru.

Please refer to Appendix 1 for detailed descriptions of these projects and their development stages.

As of September 30, 2026, there are 53 ongoing projects, including 26 discovery projects, 14 preclinical projects, and 13 clinical trials⁵ in the GHIT Fund's portfolio. The total amount of investments since 2013 is JPY 48.1 billion (USD 305 million¹) (Appendix 2).

¹ USD 1 = JPY 157.31, the approximate exchange rate on Sep 30, 2026.

² These awarded projects were selected and approved as new investments from among proposals to RFP2025-002 and RFP2026-001 for the Target Research Platform, the Screening Platform, the Hit-to-Lead Platform, and the Product Development Platform.

³ WHO: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/trachoma

⁴ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention https://www.cdc.gov/ebola/situation-summary/index.html

⁵ This number includes projects in the registration phase.

The GHIT Fund is a Japan-based international public-private partnership (PPP) fund that was formed between the Government of Japan, multiple pharmaceutical companies, the Gates Foundation, Wellcome, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The GHIT Fund invests in and manages an R&D portfolio of development partnerships aimed at addressing neglected diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis, and neglected tropical diseases, which afflict the world's vulnerable and underserved populations. In collaboration with global partners, the GHIT Fund mobilizes Japanese industry, academia, and research institutes to create new drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics for malaria, tuberculosis, and neglected tropical diseases. https://www.ghitfund.org/

Appendix 1. Project Details

ID: G2026-104

ID: G2026-124

ID: T2026-193

ID: T2026-194

ID: T2025-257

ID: T2026-152

ID: S2025-211

ID: T2025-261

ID: T2025-283

*All amounts are listed at an exchange rate of USD 1 = JPY 157.31, the approximate exchange rate on September 30, 2026.

Appendix 2. Investment Overview (as of September 30, 2026)

Investments to date

Total investments: JPY 48.1 billion (USD 305 million¹)

Total invested projects: 158 (53 active projects and 105 completed projects)

To learn more about the GHIT Fund's investments, please visit

Investment Overview: https://www.ghitfund.org/investment/overview/en

Portfolio: https://www.ghitfund.org/investment/portfolio/en

Advancing Portfolio: https://www.ghitfund.org/investment/advancingportfolio/en

Clinical Candidates: https://www.ghitfund.org/investment/clinicalcandidates/en

For more information, contact:

Katy Lenard at +1-202-494-2584 or klenard@burness.com

Eriko Mugitani at +81-36441-2032 or eriko.mugitani@ghitfund.org

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SOURCE GHIT Fund