The swine flu pandemic may have opened the way to the creation of revolutionary new all-purpose vaccines, researchers revealed yesterday.
People who survived infection with the H1N1 virus seem to have developed powerful levels of protection against all kinds of flu, scientists said.
The discovery offers hope of protecting humanity against the fear of a worldwide outbreak of killer flu viruses – the fear which provoked the massive global effort to contain swine flu.
Survivors of swine flu produce immune system antibodies that can protect against a variety of flu strains, according to the research in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Current flu vaccines are designed to combat individual strains of flu – and have to be based on predictions about which kinds will dominate during the annual flu season.
Dr Patrick Wilson, of the University of Chicago, USA, said: "The result is something like the Holy Grail for flu-vaccine research.
"It demonstrates how to make a single vaccine that could potentially provide immunity to all influenza. The surprise was that such a very different influenza strain, as opposed to the most common strains, could lead us to something so widely applicable."
The findings come from a study of nine patients treated at the Hope Clinic in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Patients had experienced a range of illness, from mild to life-threatening.
The scientists discovered some five antibodies that could counteract seasonal flu, the bird flu H5N1 and the Spanish flu which killed millions in 1918.
Researcher Dr Jens Wrammert, of the Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, said: "These findings show that these types of antibodies can be induced in humans, if the immune system has the right stimulation."
Journal of Experimental Medicine January 10 2011
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