PLOS
Universal vaccines that protect against multiple strains of
influenza virus at once could offer key population-level benefits over
conventional seasonal vaccines, according to a new study published in PLOS
Computational Biology.
Flu-causing viruses are continually evolving. To keep up,
scientists must update vaccines regularly so that people can be protected
against whichever seasonal strains pose the greatest risk.
However, researchers
are working to develop universal vaccines that could protect against multiple
flu strains without needing to be updated.
Research on universal flu vaccines has mostly focused on their
potential effects in individual patients. To better understand their effects at
the population level, Rahul Subramanian of The University of Chicago and
colleagues mathematically modeled the interactions between vaccination, flu
transmission, and flu virus evolution.
The model revealed that deployment of universal vaccines across
large populations could reduce flu transmission more efficiently than
conventional vaccines.
It could also slow the evolution of new strains of influenza virus and bolster herd immunity, protecting against the emergence of especially dangerous pandemic strains.
"New influenza vaccines could, for the first time, maintain
their effectiveness in the face of viral evolution," Subramanian says.
"In doing so they could transform the way we manage influenza in
future."
However, conventional vaccines that are well-matched against
circulating flu strains are highly effective and are likely to continue to play
an important role.
Subramanian says that an optimal approach may be to
strategically use universal vaccines alongside conventional vaccines to protect
at-risk groups while controlling transmission in the whole population.