Antibodies from H1N1 survivors may be useful

The Journal of Experimental Medicine has just published a study with a striking and unexpected finding: antibodies from the blood of recovered victims of the 2009 epidemic of H1N1 flu virus (“swine” flu) protect against many other forms of the flu, including nearly all H1N1 strains from the past and Avian flu. The antibodies even appear to provide immunity in lab tests against the deadly Spanish flu, which killed tens of millions at the end of the First World War.

The antibodies tested came from patients who had not been immunized against H1N1 but who had been infected by the virus. These antibodies were then tested against 86 different flu strains. Based on these tests, researchers said that five of these antibodies could prove useful in developing a much better, stronger and longer-acting type of universal flu vaccine — one that would not have to be administered every year.

However, ACSH’s Dr. Josh Bloom notes that “according to the paper, the antibodies may only protect against N1 flu variants, although this is not entirely clear.” But, observes ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross, “Even if researchers are not ready to make a new vaccine immediately such as would provide universal flu immunity — the ‘Holy Grail’ of virology — this may prove very significant, and it certainly points the way towards further study.”