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Developing vaccine ammunition for the
next potential pandemic threat: H5N1 flu
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H5N1 kills nearly all the birds that it infects, and among the
reported cases in people since 2003, 56% have proven fatal.
Vaccines for poultry have been tested since April, but vaccines for
people are only currently being considered if the virus eventually
undergoes a complicated string of mutations that allow it to
spread from person to person. There’s no evidence of that yet.
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Despite the lack of vaccination preparation, many scientists believe
H5N1 to have pandemic potential. Developing new, better-tailored
shots for the current strain would be complicated, though, because
most flu vaccines are grown in chicken eggs, and requires
individually inoculating each egg with a modified virus.
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Dr. Suresh Mittal, a virology professor at Purdue University, states:
"In a real pandemic situation, the poultry will be at threat, and then the supply
of the eggs will be highly compromised."
Dr. Gregory Poland, founder and director of the Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine
Research Group, states: "What we need is a library of H5N1 vaccine
candidates that are ready to go. We’re putting people and economies at
cataclysmic risk by not being prepared."
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