Nano flu vaccine protects against seasonal flu

According to a recent study, researchers have developed an experimental flu vaccine that protects animals from a variety of seasonal and pandemic strains of the flu

The vaccine is currently entering clinical trials

If proven safe and effective, these next-generation flu vaccines could replace current seasonal options by providing protection against more strains that current vaccines cannot adequately cover

A study published March 24 in the journal Nature details how new flu vaccines are designed and how they protect mice, ferrets and non-human primates

The work was led by researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine and members of the Center for Vaccine Research at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health

An estimated 290,000 to 650,000 people have now died from the flu virus

To create an improved version of the flu vaccine, the team attached the hemagglutinin proteins from four different influenza viruses to custom-made nanoproteins

This approach allows unprecedented control over the molecular structure of the resulting vaccine and produces a better immune response than conventional flu vaccines

The new nanoparticle vaccine contains the same four hemagglutinin proteins as the commercial quadrivalent influenza vaccine and produces the same or better response to the vaccine-matched strain in mice, ferrets and non-human primates as the commercial vaccine , which can neutralize the antibody response

Nanovaccines (but not commercial vaccines) can also induce protective antibody responses against viruses not included in the vaccine formulation

"Our vaccine does have a strong response to strain-matched viruses, and we see that additional coverage for mismatched strains can reduce risk during flu season," Ellis said

refer to:

Seyhan Boyoglu-Barnum, Daniel Ellis, Rebecca A.

Nature: Nano flu vaccine protects against seasonal flu