May 30, 2006

US researcher using salmonella to develop flu vaccines

If US researcher Roy Curtiss is successful, people may be drinking Salmonella, a bacteria that invades the gut and causes diarrhea, to vaccinate themselves from bird flu.

The process, believed to be a quicker way of manufacturing vaccines than the traditional method derived from eggs, is being researched at the Arizona State University.

The research is one of many that have sprung up since the threat of bird flu surfaced in America and health authorities are spending millions preparing for a flu pandemic.

The bird flu has killed 115 people since 2003, mainly in Asia, but has yet to mutate into a form that would be easily spread among people.

The federal government recently awarded US$1 billion in contracts to manufacturers to develop cell-based vaccines. By growing vaccines in large tanks, the companies hope to trim down on the six-month timeline required of egg-based process.

While cell-based processes may be a bit faster than the egg-based process, it is also long and complicated.

Curtiss chose salmonella because it could inducing immunity in the airways and other key parts of the body the flu viruses strike at. 

Salmonella is a common cause of food poisoning, invading the gut and causing diarrhea. The salmonella used in this case is genetically modified such that it would not cause poisoning.

Salmonella invades lymph nodes in the intestines, which then trigger immunity in the body and is considered as a more direct route to activating the immune system.