Swine Flu Vaccine May Take Longer
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May 22, 2009 by fluoutbreak
Add 2 months to the timetable for producing a vaccine against the virus causing the swine flu outbreak, says an advisory group to the World Health Organization (WHO).
It may be mid-July before manufacturers have the appropriate “seed stock” to start making the vaccine against the new A (H1N1), according to a report posted online today from a WHO working group on vaccines that met via teleconference on 14 May. The report says a crude form of the seed stock likely will be ready by the end of the month, but 1 to 2 weeks of testing in animals will be required. Manufacturers typically need 1 to 2 months more to find the fastest growing strains that will produce the most surface proteins from the virus, which are the main ingredients in a vaccine. The group warned that moving too quickly “could result in starting vaccine production with strains of lower growth potential,” as happened with a strain of H5N1, the bird flu virus. “Using a poorly growing A (H1N1) virus could reduce global supplies of A (H1N1) vaccine,” the group warned.
On 1 May, Marie-Paule Kieny, director of WHO’s initiative for vaccine research, predicted that the seed stock would be ready “by mid- or end of May.” Kieny, who spoke at a press conference, said, “The reality is that from the time the potentially pandemic virus is identified, it takes between 4 to 6 months to have the first doses of vaccine coming out of the factory and be available for immunizing people.”
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