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Avian flu vaccine a year away?

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  • Avian flu vaccine a year away?



    LONDON -- GlaxoSmithKline may be able to produce a vaccine in mass quantities to protect humans from avian flu by next year, the drugmaker said yesterday following encouraging results from a clinical trial.


    The prototype vaccine, which could potentially be used during a pandemic caused by the H5N1 virus, uses low doses of its active ingredient, meaning that greater quantities could be produced. The vaccine uses an inactivated strain of H5N1 that was isolated in Indonesia last year.


    The results are based on a trial conducted on 400 adults in Belgium using a vaccine that includes adjuvant, an ingredient added to vaccines to stimulate the immune system and increase its response.


    "It's a good and exciting piece of science," said Dr. David Nabarro, the United Nations' co-ordinator for avian and pandemic influenza. "But as with all new discoveries, quite a lot of work has now got to be done to establish its place in public health and pandemic preparedness."
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