So far, the public health authorities have been in a continuous alert due to the presence of H5N1, the bird flu virus which affected Asia and infected about 100 humans in the past 18 months, half of the victims not surviving the virus attack. Scientists worry about a possible global pandemic, and so they have been trying to develop an effective vaccine against H5N1. Until now millions of birds were slaughtered in Asia in the attempt of stopping the virus from transmitting itself to animals and humans.
After a long wait, yesterday, a federal health spokesman said that the scientists have finally created an effective vaccine against a strain of the flu virus that is considered to be a possible spark for the beginning of a global pandemic.
The vaccine has been tested on 133 volunteers within a study conducted by US universities, and has proved to be efficient, providing a powerful weapon against the flu virus.
The study has been conducted at the University of Maryland at Baltimore, the University of Rochester in New York and the University of California at Los Angeles.
The conclusions of the study were that two doses of the vaccine are enough to produce the right immunization to neutralize the virus.
Also, a British company is working to produce an effective bird flu vaccine.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony S. Fauci declared to be very enthusiastic about the new vaccine and its immunizing properties, also declaring that he considers the tests to be a key step in the world's attempt to stop a possible global pandemic.
Another scientist, Michael T. Osterholm of the University of Minnesota was very relieved when hearing about the success registered by the new vaccine when tested, and declare that he was worried about the fact that two doses of the vaccine might not have been working, that constituting a real problem for the researchers.
More testing will be needed before the vaccine will be ready to be mass produced, and also a method of distributing large quantities will have to be designed.
Scientists are positive that in case of a global pandemic a lot of people will be left unvaccinated due to the existent lacks in the health system, because it is not easy to produce and distribute the vaccine effectively in a short time.
Bird Flu Virus H5n1
What was only a supposition, now it is proven, that the bird flu virus has evolved in two strains that are distinct genetically speaking. This is not good news as it might cause even more deaths among humans and the researchers will have to work double for finding an effective vaccine against these two forms of bird flu virus.
Between the year 2003 and 2005, US scientists have been collecting and analyzing more than 300 samples of H5N1 virus taken from infected birds and humans. They discovered that in 2003 and 2004 the human and bird population was affected by the same type of virus that was active in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. But in 2005 a new strain of H5N1 virus appeared and infected people from Indonesia. This virus is in a continuous genetic development and as time goes by our treatment option become more and more restrained.
Since 2003 the virus affected 180 people and killed 100 from all over the world. Doctors are afraid that a pandemic could start if the virus is not kept under control and hope that this virus will remain a bird virus and will not change into a human one. If the virus gains the ability of transmitting itself from human to human then the whole world population is in danger.
Fortunately, according to the scientists those two forms of the virus do not have the possibility of spreading easily from on person to another.
Until now the US scientists have been trying to find a vaccine that will kill both viruses. The vaccine will be 100% definitive once the exact form of a pandemic virus is known. The scientists believe that one vaccine could offer partial protection against the other type of virus strain if it works against the first one.
Scientists need to move fast because the viruses have the ability of changing their status and of developing very fast, gaining even the possibility of transmitting themselves from one person to another.
The thing is that no one had expected for the virus to travel around the world so easily and to mutate so fast creating another strain. But scientists are confident that by keeping the virus under control in birds they can find a suitable vaccine in a year or two. As long as the governments work together and help each other there is no need for panic as there is still hope for a cure.