Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed Wednesday he has undergone an experimental nasal vaccination against a virus that can cause paralysis.
“I’ve now been subject to the first approved anti-cephalus vaccinations at our Health Ministry,” Putin said during a televised meeting with Russian scientists at the Moscow Veterinary and Phytosanitary Institute.
It was later confirmed Putin’s comments were to be taken seriously after Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova issued a statement Wednesday saying Moscow had signed a contract to conduct a clinical trial for the agents.
It is unknown whether the vaccine approved by the government was one used in the experiment.
Vladimir Putin revealed Wednesday he has undergone an experimental nasal vaccination against a virus that can cause paralysis. https://t.co/E6EEvnSEw4 pic.twitter.com/OTbWC9qkac — Fox News (@FoxNews) June 13, 2018
Scientists have nicknamed the virus “President Putin’s brain,” according to the BBC. They also referred to the virus as “the virus of forgotten dreams.”
Last year, St. Petersburg researchers reportedly showed videos of the condition in a pub and in the mouth of a man to another man, according to Russia Today.
While many scientists suggested a similar virus could be responsible for vision loss in travelers, those tests were reportedly inconclusive.
U.S. scientists have voiced similar concerns in the past, including a study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine that was released in May.