Doctors recommend getting your flu shot annually, since\u00a0the specific influenza strain it targets varies from year to year. But what if the shot could be more effective while\u00a0protecting\u00a0against more strains?<\/p>\n
Researchers from the\u00a0University of Missouri School of Medicine\u00a0are one step closer to making this happen. When the immune system sees a new strain of a familiar virus, it typically focuses on\u00a0the parts\u00a0it ‘remembers’\u00a0most,\u00a0even if those regions\u00a0have\u00a0changed.<\/p>\n
In our vaccine model, we targeted specific but distinct regions of the protein on the surface\u00a0of the influenza virus. These regions are called epitopes. The model\u00a0included different versions of\u00a0epitopes in hopes of redirecting how the immune system responds. We found that\u00a0the vaccine\u00a0approach helped\u00a0the immune system target\u00a0more variants of the virus, leading to broader protection.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Henry Wan,\u00a0study author\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wan says the epitopes help the immune system see the flu virus differently, and it learns to respond with more coordination\u00a0between the different types\u00a0of immune cells.\u00a0Some of the\u00a0epitopes are also not as likely to change,\u00a0which could make flu vaccines more reliable or even\u00a0help create\u00a0a\u00a0universal\u00a0flu vaccine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Right now, current influenza vaccines primarily trigger\u00a0immune responses to the entire protein,\u00a0especially\u00a0in the highly variable region, instead of focusing on parts that don’t change much,” Wan said. “So, when changes happen\u00a0\u2013 which\u00a0is likely\u00a0\u2013 the immune system may not respond\u00a0effectively or activate its ‘memory’\u00a0after re-exposure.”<\/p>\n
If targeting epitopes\u00a0works\u00a0in humans, this\u00a0method could be adopted to fight other fast-changing viruses,\u00a0like COVID-19 or RSV.<\/p>\n
“These upper respiratory infections<\/a> are a major\u00a0public health\u00a0concern\u00a0and contribute to thousands of deaths\u00a0per year,” Wan said. “Anything we can do to improve the influenza vaccine can help save lives and keep people out of the hospital.”<\/p>\n Xiu-Feng (Henry) Wan, PhD\u00a0is a professor of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology;\u00a0Veterinary Pathobiology; and\u00a0Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Mizzou School of Medicine and the Colleges of Veterinary Medicine and Engineering.\u00a0He\u00a0directs the NextGen Center for Influenza and Emerging Infectious Diseases, which aims to understand and prevent the spread of infectious diseases,\u00a0and\u00a0is also a Curators’ Distinguished Professor.\u00a0<\/p>\n Source:<\/p>\n University of Missouri-Columbia<\/a><\/p>\n Journal reference:<\/p>\n