Intranasal, rapid-acting vaccine for all seasonal and pandemic influenza viruses

Researchers worldwide have been working to develop a universal flu vaccine, but no breakthrough has yet been achieved. FLUniversal is not ""another costly universal flu project"". It is an opportunity to create a genuine universal flu vaccine that will set the standard for rapid, efficient vaccine development, and generate know-how and tools to develop next-generation vaccines. We plan to exploit our increased understanding of molecular mechanisms of influenza infection and immunity to develop a vaccine effective against all flu virus strains. Our innovation uses genetically modified flu strains administered intranasally in a prime-boost regimen. This approach rapidly induces interferon and broadly cross-neutralising antibodies in the nasal passages and a systemic immune response directed to the conserved HA stalk. Proof of concept for universal protection was demonstrated in the ferret