Universal Flu Vaccine in Stage 1 Trials
RandomFactor writes:
Flu shots are an annual annoyance with limited effectiveness (on average between 40 and 60 percent.) There is now hope to eliminate this annual ritual and provide more effective protection with a potential universal flu vaccine in clinical trials.
To keep up with antigenic drift, scientists are constantly tweaking the flu vaccine, which is designed to respond to a surface protein called hemagglutinin, targeting what [Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infections Diseases (NIAID)] calls the "head" of the protein. "When you make a good response, the good news is you get protected. The problem is, the head is that part of the protein that has a propensity to mutate a lot."
The other end of the protein-the "stem"-is much more resistant to mutations. A vaccine that targets the hemagglutinin stem has the potential to provide protection against all subtypes of influenza and work regardless of antigenic drift, offering an essentially universal defense against the flu. NIAID, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is currently working to develop a candidate for a universal flu vaccine in a Phase 1 clinical trial, the first time the vaccine candidate has been given to people. Results on the safety and efficacy of the vaccine are due in early 2020.
Reason for hope in the future, but for now according to Fauci "The initial indicators indicate this is not going to be a good season-this is going to be a bad season."
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