Retroscreen receives €630K for flu vaccine research

Research grant

The contract research company Retroscreen Virology Ltd has received €630,050 in funding from the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for its part in a consortium researching an intranasal vaccine against avian influenza. 

Though the primary focus is on the H5N1 strain, the consortium plans to work on the development of a vaccine that induces immunity against other strains of the influenza virus, thereby providing greater protection than is currently available. A key objective is the development of a readily available, intranasal vaccine that is effective at a low dose.

Current vaccines are required in high doses and have complex manufacturing processes, so stockpiles are likely to be inadequate if a global pandemic were to break out. 

This aim is that the intranasal vaccine will raise mucosal antibodies in the nose, thus halting the virus at its point of entry, and go onto to induce systemic immunity within the body. Nasal delivery avoids injections, thus increasing compliance as well as reducing the risks associated with syringes. The potential for self-administration could also reduce the cost of delivery.

Robert Lambkin-Williams, Managing Director of Retroscreen, said the funding will help to reach the goal of producing an effective, easy-to-use vaccine against avian influenza. “The threat of a global pandemic is very real and highlights an important medical need because adequate vaccines in large supply are simply not available. We are collaborating with leading industrial and academic institutions to develop a vaccine that will not only meet this global demand but also provide cross-immunity against mutated strains of the virus.”

Other  members of the consortium are Archimedes Ltd, the Universities of Leicester, Bergen and Siena, the UK National Institute of Biological Standards Control, Trinity College Dublin, and Evicom Ltd.