Kiwis help push universal flu vaccine
A Kiwi breakthrough could be instrumental in developing a universal flu vaccine that lasts up to five years and saves thousands of lives and billions of dollars.
The study is the first in the world to show a specific and unexpected immune response to the sometimes deadly virus.
The study led by ESR (Institute of Environmental Science and Research) has changed understanding of a critical part of the flu virus, with the Crown Research Institute’s report on its research having just been accepted by the Journal of Infectious Diseases.
The quest for a universal vaccine, which could eliminate the need to update and administer the seasonal flu vaccine each year, is the focus of intense global research.
The Southern Hemisphere Influenza and Vaccine Effectiveness Research and Surveillance (Shivers) study looked at 1500 randomly selected people from Auckland.
‘‘The study surprised us by showing a strong and robust immune response against the second-most abundant protein in influenza, neuraminidase, particularly among children under 5,’’ the study’s principal investigator, virologist Sue Huang, said.
Current vaccines target haemagglutinin, while neuraminidase has been largely ignored in vaccine development.
There was also a response of a similar strength among those infected with influenza B virus.
‘‘Our results have generated an important understanding of people’s immune response against this protein, neuraminidase,’’ Huang said.
Comparing antibody responses to the two most abundant proteins of the influenza virus would not just improve understanding of how the body responds to and protects itself against flu but would also optimise pandemic and seasonal vaccine design, Huang said.
Ministry of Health director of public health Dr Caroline McElnay said ESR’s research was welcome.
Influenza was a significant public health issue with 10 to 20 per cent of Kiwis infected every year. About 400 died on average from flu or related complications each year.
‘‘Improvements in vaccine effectiveness may help to improve . . . protection, which may reduce the disease’s impacts on people’s health, costs to the health services and reduced productivity because of sickness,’’ she said.
Those impacts would depend on a universal vaccine’s cost, its effectiveness and coverage, especially for high-risk groups, she said.
Following the findings ESR has been awarded an international contract – Shivers-II – to continue the focus on immune response to flu vaccines or infections.