France Press Agency, Posted on Wed July 07, 2021 at 17:01
US biotech company Moderna said on Wednesday it had begun human trials of a flu vaccine using messenger RNA technology, the same technology used in the Covid-19 vaccine.
These studies will involve 180 adults to assess the safety and severity of the immune response resulting from the injection of this product, called mRNA-1010.
If successful, these trials could lead to a new generation of flu vaccines with better performance.
Current flu vaccines use inactivated viruses that have lost their ability to cause infections, but can still stimulate an immune system response.
The strain used must be selected months in advance and its effectiveness is between 40 and 60%.
Messenger RNA vaccines target a small part of the virus – for example, in the case of the coronavirus, the so-called ‘spike’ protein. Strings of genetic instructions, called messenger RNA, are injected into the body, instructing the body to make that particular antigen, the coronavirus “spike.” This in itself harmless point is detected by the immune system, which produces antibodies. These antibodies can then fight the virus in the event of a real infection.
Moderna hopes this technology will enable faster development of flu vaccines. Different strains can also be targeted in a single injection.
The vaccine being tested will target influenza A subtypes known as H1N1 and H3N2, as well as influenza B, Yamagata and Victoria strains.
The World Health Organization estimates that flu is responsible for about 3 to 5 million cases of serious illness each year and for 290,000 to 650,000 deaths.
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