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Commentary
CDC
Testing Pandemic trH3N2 Vaccine
Recombinomics Commentary
21:50
August 3, 2011
The CDC has
released sequences (at
GISAID) of new constructs, A/Minnesota/11/2010 X-203 and
A/Minnesota/11/2010
X-203A, indicating these isolates are undergoing testing as pandemic
trH3N2
vaccine target. The first human case of trH3N2 in the
The viruses are triple reassortants with human H3, N2, and PB1.
However,
these genes trace back to the 1990’s when a swine infected with
classical H1N1
was infected with a human H3N2 virus creating double
reassortants. In the
late 1990's an avian infection of a swine infected with a double
reassortant
created a triple reassortant with a polymerase complex composed of
human PB1
and avian PB2 and PA.
The triple reassortants with human H3 and N2 are designated trH3N2, but
the H3
and N2 have evolved significantly in swine, severely compromising the
immunity
to seasonal H3N2 as well as the H3N2 vaccine. Consequently, one
of the
human trH3N2 isolates from Minnesota
is the target of this new vaccine. The decision to make this
vaccine at
this time raises concerns that unreported and unpublished infections
have
further supported human to human transmission.
The sequences released today also indicate new vaccines are being
developed
against pandemic
H1N1, as well as seasonal H3N2 and influenza B, even though the recommendation
to WHO and the FDA
was to leave
targets unchanged fro the 2011/2012 flu season in the northern
hemisphere.
Consequently, worldwide vaccine production is targeting isolates from
2009 or
earlier, which appear to be no
longer
effective.
Detail on the reasons behind the emphasis on new vaccine targets at
this time
would be useful.
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