panflu Stats

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This may have changed due to the date published
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Glaxo's reply to WHO's vax estimate Oct. 2007
The forecast that 4.5 billion doses of pandemic influenza vaccine could be produced by 2010 is an underestimate, according to GlaxoSmithKline.
Production capacity of 12 billion doses was a more accurate prediction.
The key reason for that is adjuvant technology", a GSK spokeswoman said.
GSK is currently working on an undisclosed adjuvant that is being used in H5N1 vaccine clinical trials.
Results suggest just 3.8mg of antigen is required to produce an immune response which reflects 80 per cent efficacy.
Seasonal flu vaccines, because they are trivalent, made up of three vaccine strains, require 45mg of antigen.
The GSK spokeswoman said all vaccines would require the adjuvant to be able to reach the 12 billion dose mark and suggested GSK could supply the adjuvant to other manufacturers of pandemic influenza vaccine.
http://www.in-pharmatechnologist.com/news/ng.asp?n=80842-gsk-who-adjuvant-pandemic-influenza-vaccine-production-capacity

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Most manufacturers developing pandemic influenza vaccine provide seasonal vaccine as well.

Currently, an estimated 565 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine will be supplied this year, up from 350 million in 2006. According to experts working in the field, the yearly production capacity for seasonal influenza vaccine is expected to rise to one billion doses in 2010.

But should a pandemic hit, much of the manufacturing capacity used for seasonal vaccines would be converted for the production of pandemic vaccines.

As this would have implications on seasonal influenza vaccine supply, many companies are working with governments and the WHO to stockpile pre-pandemic vaccine.

Meanwhile, advances are continually being made into ways of producing influenza vaccines that do not require the lengthy six-month time-frame involved with current egg-based techniques.

Earlier this year, GSK was awarded $274m to develop cell-culture technology to speed the development of vaccines, and to scale-up cell culture manufacturing capability at its Pennsylvania site.

Sanofi-Aventis is the only pharmaceutical company to have an H5N1 vaccine approved in the US, but the French company's vaccine does not contain an adjuvant.