French pharmaceutical company Sanofi announced Tuesday the launching of a project to research and develop a vaccine against Zika virus (ZIKV) amid growing disease fears.

Via its vaccines division, Sanofi Pasteur, the drug maker said to use its expertise in developing vaccines for similar viruses such as yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis and, most recently, dengue.

"Established research and industrial infrastructure for the newly licensed vaccine for dengue, Dengvaxia, can be rapidly leveraged to help understand the spread of ZIKV and potentially speed identification of a vaccine candidate for further clinical development,", it added in a press release.

"Sanofi Pasteur is responding to the global call to action to develop a Zika vaccine given the disease's rapid spread and possible medical complications," says Dr. Nicholas Jackson, Global Head of Research for Sanofi Pasteur.

During an emergency meeting, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday declared an international public health emergency due to Zika's worrying spread and link to thousands of recent birth defects in Brazil.

Mosquito-borne Zika virus has symptoms including fever, muscle and joint pain, headache, nausea and rash. Affecting pregnant women, the virus could cause " microcephaly results in an abnormally small head impairing brain development."

Currently, there is no vaccine or specific treatment for Zika. The World Health Organization said expecting 3.4 million of Zika cases. Endit

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