'Avian influenza vaccine needs elaborate testing'

Manipal, Karnataka, Mar 18 (UNI) Nobel laureate Professor Peter Doherty has said vaccine for avian influenza has been developed using a new technique called 'reverse genetics', but it required careful testing before use as it was genetically modified.

''Influenza vaccines are generally effective, provided they target the 'right' flu virus. The problem is that the virus changes, and we get new pandemics every two years or so. Influenza vaccines are generally made by growing the virus in embryonated hen's eggs, killing it with formation than cleaning the product up in different ways. The reason for H5N1 bird flu is so scary that the virus kills the eggs before new virus is made...no virus...no vaccine. This problem has now been solved using a new technique called reverse genetics,'' he said.

The Professor from the University of Melbourne, Australia, who received the Nobel for his research on avian influenza, was giving a presentation on 'Virus Killer and Killer T Cells' after inaugurating the three-day international conference on 'Human Variation and Pharmacogenomics' here yesterday.

Prof Doherty said these H5N1 viruses were not infectious for humans, but enormously severe when they do infect. The general perception was that it might take ten mutations for the H5N1 viruses to spread among humans which was changing constantly. Since 2003, the H5N1 virus had killed 168/277 clinical cases and there were two recent deaths in Laos and a new case in Egypt.

''We can only make enough vaccines to protect about three million people now, but that capacity is being increased,'' he said.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms Stella Morahan, Director, Science Cooperation, Australian High Commission, New Delhi, said bilateral ties between India and Australia had grown by 43 per cent in 2006.

As many as 36,000 Indian students were studying in Australia.

Under the Indo-Australian research fund, proposed to be set up during the recent visit of Australian Prime Minister to India, 25 million Dollars had been set apart -- 20 million Dollars for research activity between the two nations and the rest for student exchange programmes, she said.

UNI