NIH SCIENTISTS STUDY ADJUVANTED AVIAN FLU VACCINE

When combined with an immune-boosting substance called an adjuvant, low doses of an experimental vaccine against a strain of avian influenza (H9N2) provoked a strong antibody response in human volunteers, according to scientists supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the NIH.

"The results of this clinical trial add to the growing body of information demonstrating the potential value of adjuvanted avian influenza vaccines," said NIAID Director Anthony Fauci. An adjuvant is a substance that is added to a vaccine to boost the body's immune response to the vaccine's antigen. "In the event of an influenza pandemic, adjuvanted vaccines could provide a way to extend a limited vaccine supply to more people," he added.

In 2004, NIAID asked Novartis to produce 40,000 doses of an experimental H9N2 vaccine, some of which were formulated with Novartis's MF59 adjuvant. In trials, researchers found that a single inoculation of adjuvant-containing H9N2 vaccine was as good as two doses of vaccine without adjuvant.