AKIPRESS.COM - The U.S. scientists have developed a prototype of the universal influenza vaccine that may confer lifetime immunity against an evolving virus, the Oregon Health and Science University reports.
Researchers reported the vaccine generated a robust immune response in nonhuman primates that were exposed to the avian H5N1 influenza virus. The primates were vaccinated against the influenza virus of 1918.
Chief of the Division of Pathobiology at OHSU's Oregon National Primate Research Center Jonah Sacha said that this result became possible because the interior protein of the influenza virus remains almost unchanged even after 100 years of evolution. He hopes that a truly universal influenza vaccine will be developed within 5-10 years.
The vaccine is based on the modified common herpes virus cytomegalovirus, which infects about 60% of the Earth's population. The virus acts as a vector specifically designed to induce an immune response from the body’s own T cells.
Researchers designed a CMV-based vaccine using the 1918 influenza virus as a template. They exposed the vaccinated nonhuman primates to small particle aerosols containing the avian H5N1 influenza virus. Six of the 11 vaccinated primates survived the exposure, despite the century-long period of virus evolution.
The scientists say that the CMV vaccines may be able to generate an effective, long-lasting immune response against a wide suite of virus variants that are separated by decades of evolution.
