EpiVax announced a new NIH-funded collaboration to develop a protective avian influenza A (H7N9) vaccine.
H7N9 is distantly related to seasonal influenza and presents a challenge for traditional flu vaccine approaches, which rely on prior exposure to be effective. Using state-of-the-art bioinformatics and molecular modeling methods, this cutting-edge program aims to engineer the H7N9 hemagglutinin protein to resemble seasonal flu; a process designed to engage immunological memory and make conventional hemagglutinin-focused flu vaccines protective against the new high-mortality avian influenza.
The program will be carried out by scientists with a wide range of influenza expertise across immunology, vaccinology, structural biology, bioinformatics, animal infection models and vaccine manufacture. The participating institutions include EpiVax, UMASS Medical School, Protein Sciences, recently acquired by Sanofi Pasteur, and The University of Georgia.
This five-year program will address pandemic preparedness, which is a pillar of the US Government's National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza.