Important Step Forward In Our Preparations For The Next Pandemic

The CDC, to little fanfare, announced that they had come up with a vaccine effective against the 1918 flu, at least in mice. This from the CDC;

Federal scientists have developed a vaccine that protects mice against the killer 1918 influenza virus. They also have created a technique for identifying antibodies that neutralize this virus, a tool that could help contain future pandemic flu strains. These findings are important, the researchers say, to understanding and preventing the recurrence of the H1N1 influenza virus that caused the 1918 pandemic and to protecting against virulent flu strains in the future, including the H5N1 avian flu virus.
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“A key to containing pandemic flu viruses is to understand their vulnerabilities and determine whether they can evade immune recognition,” says [Dr. Gary J. Nabel, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)]. “What we learn about the H1N1 virus that caused the 1918 pandemic is pertinent to other pandemic viruses and to the development of effective and universal vaccines.”

Using the genetic sequence information for the 1918 flu virus, Dr. Nabel and his VRC colleagues created plasmids—small strands of DNA designed to express specific characteristics—carrying genes for the virus’ hemagglutinin (HA) protein, the surface protein found in all flu viruses that allows the virus to stick to a cell and cause infection.
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Mice were then injected with a DNA vaccine containing both types of plasmids to determine whether they would generate immune responses to the 1918 virus. The researchers found significant responses both in terms of production of T-cells, the white blood cells critical in the immune system’s battle against invading viruses, as well as the production of neutralizing antibodies.

To determine the vaccine’s protective effects, the CDC’s Dr. Tumpey intranasally exposed a group of mice to live, reconstructed 1918 virus 14 days after they were immunized with the experimental DNA vaccine. All 10 vaccinated mice survived the challenge with the deadly virus.
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“Who would have imagined five years ago that we’d be able to create a vaccine that protects against one of the deadliest forms of influenza the world has ever seen?” adds Dr. Nabel. “It’s because the 1918 flu virus has been reconstructed that we are now able the further understand it. Hopefully, this virus will help us to develop effective vaccine strategies for current pandemic influenza virus threats.”

(Source: CDC)

technorati tags: avian influenza, h5, bird flu