A vaccine against Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever—a disease spread by ticks of the genus Hyalomma, which the media have dubbed “mutant ticks”—could be developed within months, Izvestia reports, citing Alexander Gintsburg, scientific director of the Gamaleya National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology.
The expert noted that the institute currently has no formal order to develop such a vaccine. Moreover, no specific immunisation product against Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever currently exists.
“Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever used to occur in the southern regions, but there is a trend of the ticks that carry it adapting to low temperatures and expanding their range. There is no specific treatment for this disease. To develop a vaccine, we could use one of the proven platforms previously employed against other pathogens. If a relevant decision is made and funding is allocated, this work would take months,” he said.
Reports about the spread of “mutant ticks” in southern regions of Russia, where they were previously rare, began to appear on 18 March.
In August 2025, the Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine in Novosibirsk, together with international colleagues, obtained five compounds that could serve as the basis for a drug against dengue fever.
