May 5, 2006

US government earmarks US$1 billion for bird flu vaccine development

The US Department of Health and Human Services has awarded more than US$1 billion in contracts Thursday (May 4) to five vaccine manufacturers to develop bird flu vaccines.

The companies awarded the contract include GlaxoSmithKline ,Medimmune, Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics , DynPort Vaccine, and Solvay Pharmaceuticals.

Current vaccines for the H5N1 strain of bird flu do not produce enough of an immune reaction from the body, so a stronger vaccine is needed, the department said.

Also, the department wants to accelerate the relatively slow method deployed by vaccine manufacturers currently. Based on the current pace, it would take three to five years to develop enough vaccine for every US resident, Secretary Mike Leavitt said.

To make matters worse, flu viruses mutate and change rapidly, meaning that vaccines might have become obsolete by the time it is manufactured. 

Manufacturers are expected to develop cell-based technology rather than rely on current egg-based methods.

The government also envisaged a stockpile of 4 million doses of vaccine to provide some broad-based protection.

Vaccine companies are also researching DNA-based vaccines, done by inserting the genes of the flu into a harmless virus. A vaccine made this way would protect against all types of flu.

Such a vaccine would be the pinnacle of vaccine development, Leavitt said, because it would make annual flu shots a thing of the past.