Scientists are beginning clinical trials of a new flu vaccine that could offer long-term protection against multiple strains of the disease, Oxford University said today.
Existing vaccines produce antibodies in reaction to the proteins on the surface of the virus, but these change between strains and over time.
But by changing the way the vaccine works so that it attacks the internal proteins that remain the same, the scientists think they have hit on a vaccine that works for many different strains.
The jab could even make patients immune to human mutations of bird flu in the event of a pandemic.
Currently doctors can only vaccinate against certain strains of flu and the formulation has to be changed every year to cope with the constant changes in the disease.
Dr Sarah Gilbert of the Jenner Institute, University of Oxford, said: “This approach to influenza vaccination is unsatisfactory for use against seasonal influenza and of little use when new types of flu begin to infect humans from birds.
“It leaves manufacturers with a few months to produce the necessary stocks, the vaccine has to be administered to at-risk populations within a short time window, and those receiving the injection will all have to be vaccinated again the following year.
“By targeting the internal proteins of the virus, we can come up with a universal flu jab. The same vaccine would work against all seasonal flu and protect against bird flu,” said Dr Gilbert.
The vaccine is being tested on 12 volunteers. If the trial is successful it will require extensive further testing before it can be approved for use by doctors.
The World Health Organization states that each year flu epidemics result in between three and five million cases of severe illness and between 250,000 and 500,000 deaths around the world.
Most deaths in industrialised countries occur among elderly people over 65 years of age.
There have been four flu pandemics in the 20th century, with the 1918 pandemic causing an estimated 40-50 million deaths worldwide.
WHO also states that there have been 385 cases of the H5N1 avian influenza being transmitted from birds to humans since 2003, resulting in 243 deaths.
PA