Novartis’ MF59 Vaccine Shows Efficacy in Avian Flu

A new study of Novartis’ MF59-adjuvanted vaccine showed that it rapidly induced protective antibody levels against diverse strains of avian flu. In the study, individuals immunized six years earlier with an MF59 adjuvanted H5N3 (clade 0) vaccine mounted a protective immune response seven days after a single immunization with an H5N1 (clade 1) vaccine containing Novartis’ adjuvant MF59. The immune response was broadly cross reactive and covered all H5N1 clades known to date.  
   
In addition, these study results suggest individuals primed with an MF59-adjuvanted H5 vaccine, would only need one dose of an MF59-adjuvanted vaccine in a pandemic situation to elicit initial protection reducing overall response time, and potentially the spread of the virus.