Rio, March 24, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - Within a year Brazil can export the BCG Moreau tuberculosis vaccine to various countries. The announcement was made today by the scientific director of the Ataulpho de Paiva Foundation (FAP), Luiz Roberto Castelo Branco, at the inauguration of the BCG Moreau - RJ Genome Project, in partnership with the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz).

Castelo Branco explained that a unit is being constructed in the state of Rio that will make it possible to produce 60 million doses, annually. The FAP's existing factory will produce 17 million doses this year, as against 15 million doses last year.

According to the director, the Brazilian product is considered one of the best in the world, among the 12 types of vaccine available to combat tuberculosis.

The coordinator of the project at the Fiocruz, Wim Degrave, explained that another project will be developed in the next six years, to produce recombinant vaccines with BCG for oral use to combat other diseases, such as meningitis, leprosy, asthma, and external bladder cancer.

Translator: David Silberstein