Dr Takahashi cultured live but weakened chickenpox viruses in animal and human tissue and after just five short years of development, it was ready for clinical trials
The Google Doodle celebrating Dr. Michiaki Takahashi who developed the first vaccine against chickenpox. Image credit: Google
Google on Thursday celebrated the 94th birth anniversary of Japanese virologist Dr Michiaki Takahashi, who first developed the chickenpox vaccine, with a special graphic doodle.
Created by guest artist Tatsuro Kiuchi, the doodle depicts Dr Takahashi looking through a microscope, a child seemingly infected by chickenpox, and a doctor putting a bandaid on a child’s arm.
The doodle also shows a declining graph of chickenpox infections.
Dr Takahashi cultured live but weakened chickenpox viruses in animal and human tissue and after just five short years of development, it was ready for clinical trials.
In 1974, Dr Takahashi had developed the first vaccine targeting the varicella virus that causes chickenpox.
In 1986, the Research Foundation for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University began the rollout in Japan as the only varicella vaccine approved by the World Health Organization.
The lifesaving vaccine was soon utilized in over 80 countries and has since been administered to millions of children around the world as an effective measure to prevent severe cases of the contagious viral disease and its transmission.
Let’s find out more about the viral infection, its symptoms, causes, prevention, and treatment against chickenpox:
What is chickenpox and what causes it
Chickenpox is an infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus. The virus can spread when an infected person coughs or sneezes in the vicinity of a healthy person.
The chickenpox infection can be identified by an itchy rash all over the body with small, fluid-filled blisters. However, arms and legs are not as much affected as the rest of the body.
The blisters and rashes can start appearing on the body after 10 to 21 days since exposure to the virus. It may last up to 10 days.
The patient may experience fever, sore throat, abdominal pain, tiredness, poor appetite and headache due to chickenpox.
How to treat chickenpox
Chickenpox vaccine helps prevent the infection in children. The infection is highly contagious for people who haven’t had their vaccines or the disease earlier.
When infected, antiviral medicines can help with the treatment. It is also important to hydrate yourself and not to self-medicate.
As soon as symptoms appear, the patient should consult a doctor who may prescribe analgesics and antihistamines to reduce pain and itching.
How to prevent the infection
The best possible way to prevent chicken pox is to get the Varicella vaccine.
The active ingredient in Chickenpox vaccine is a live but weakened varicella-zoster virus, which is the cause of chickenpox. This especially weakened virus is called the Oka strain.
The virus in the vaccine has been weakened so that it does not cause chickenpox in normal healthy people. The weakened virus in the vaccine prompts the immune system to make antibodies against it. The immune system also reacts to the virus by developing cell-mediated immunity.
The antibodies and the cell response help protect the body against future infections.
With inputs from agencies
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