Human Trial for Avian Influenza Vaccine Begins
The first human trial of a DNA vaccine designed to prevent H5N1 avian influenza infection began on December 21, 2006, when the vaccine was administered to the first volunteer.
The first human trial of a DNA vaccine designed to prevent H5N1 avian influenza infection began on December 21, 2006, when the vaccine was administered to the first volunteer.
Scientists from the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the NIH Institutes, designed the vaccine, and it is being administered in the trial by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD.
The vaccine does not contain any infectious material from the influenza virus, and is similar to other investigational vaccines evaluated by the VRC that hold promise for controlling other viruses, such as HIV, Ebola, SARS and West Nile, according to NIAID.
Unlike conventional flu vaccines, which are developed by growing the influenza virus in hens’ eggs and then administered as a weakened or killed form of the virus, DNA-based vaccines contain only portions of the influenza virus’ genetic material. Once inside the body, the DNA instructs human cells to make proteins that act as a vaccine against the virus, according to NIAID.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza A viruses, specifically H5N1, have emerged in the past decade, causing widespread sickness and death in domestic and wild bird populations. As of December 27, 2006, 261 laboratory-confirmed human cases of H5N1 had been reported to the World Health Organization, resulting in death of more than half of infected individuals.
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