Why flu vaccines only last a year
A new study at Emory Vaccine Center gets into the bone marrow.
28 August, 2020
Photo: Numstocker / Shutterstock
- Researchers at Emory Vaccine Center looked at bone marrow to better understand antibody production.
- Due to constant mutations, identifying a "universal vaccine" has been challenging.
- The team found that blood markers are reliable indicators of what's occurring inside of bone marrow.
<p>We've known that this fall might present serious problems. Now experts are warning of a <a href="https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-08-26/with-flu-season-approaching-some-health-experts-are-bracing-for-a-twindemic" target="_blank">twindemic</a>: the potential for a bad flu season combined with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.</p><p>It all comes down to preparation.</p><p>The good news: countries in the Southern Hemisphere, including Australia and Argentina, experienced exceptionally low flu rates this year. That's in large part due to COVID-19 restrictions. Measures designed to halt the novel coronavirus also slowed the spread of the flu. </p><p>To curb the potential for a twindemic, American health officials <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/prevent/vaccinations.htm" target="_blank">suggest</a> getting a flu shot as soon as possible. </p><p>Vaccine science is tricky. While hope grows for a COVID-19 vaccine given the sheer number of researchers working toward one, flu vaccines present their own challenges, as a <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/08/12/science.aaz8432" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recent report</a> from Emory Vaccine Center details. </p><p>There is no such thing as <em>a</em> flu—there are many strains of influenza. Whereas a number of childhood vaccinations inoculate us for a lifetime, flu vaccines only last for roughly one year, as the report in Science details. </p><p>This is largely due to mutations. Humans swap influenza viruses with birds and pigs. The viruses change midstream. Some strains are nearly benign. Others prove exceptionally lethal. </p><p>Every year, a flu vaccine is produced to combat three to four flu viruses in circulation. Some years are more successful than others. Influenza vaccines always require guesswork: flu viruses can change in the course of one season in a process known as <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/viruses/change.htm" target="_blank">antigenic drift</a>. </p><p>Antibody-producing immune cells live in bone marrow, yet antibodies are usually tested for in the blood. For this research, Emory Vaccine Center director Rafi Ahmed looked at bone marrow samples—a more invasive procedure, yet one that yields clearer results. </p>
Why vaccines are absolutely necessary | Larry Brilliant | Big Think
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7f681e7e08a6ac9cea06ae50e6bbd7b5"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ffiw6K3rjiU?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Everyone is equipped with antibody-secreting immune cells. The team at Emory first had to tease out these natural cells from antibodies produced by vaccination. Using sequencing techniques, they were able to identify endogenous antibodies.</p><p>As first author of the paper, Carl Davis, <a href="https://news.emory.edu/stories/2020/08/fluvaccine_bonemarrow_science/index.html" target="_blank">says</a>:</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"We could see that these new antibodies expanded in the bone marrow one month after vaccination and then contracted after one year. On the other hand, antibodies against influenza that were in the bone marrow before the vaccine was given stayed at a constant level over one year."</p><p>Entering bone marrow is simply not enough for antibodies to continue to work. They need to root there. For the 53 healthy volunteers included in this study, traditional seasonal vaccinations could not provide this type of protection. After one year, between 70-99 percent of the antibody-producing cells were gone. </p><p>All hope is not lost. Researchers working on next-generation or universal vaccines should be encouraged that certain adjuvants could bestow longer immunity. The study also shows that screening for antibodies in blood correlates with antibody activity in bone marrow, which means future researchers can more easily identify candidates for trials. </p><p>Given increasing virus mutation due to climate change, a forever flu vaccine is going to take some work. Until then, it will remain guesswork. In a year in which a devastating twindemic hovers on the horizon, we should hope public health officials guess well. </p><p>--</p><p><em>Stay in touch with Derek on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/derekberes" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DerekBeresdotcom" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://derekberes.substack.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Substack</a>. His next book is</em> "<em>Hero's Dose: The Case For Psychedelics in Ritual and Therapy."</em></p>
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One-time, universal flu vaccine may be on horizon, Australian researchers say
We may never have to get more than one flu shot again.
22 February, 2019
Flu Shot in Arm
- Scientists have discovered immune cells that can fight all different kinds of the flu virus.
- Depending on a patient's immune system, one shot could cover someone for 10 years or potentially life.
- This breakthrough could save thousands worldwide.
<p>A new treatment shows promise in becoming a one-time flu vaccine. In a recent study conducted by Professor Katherine Kedzierska at the University of Melbourne, researchers discovered a set of immune cells that have the ability to fight off all forms of the flu virus. </p><p>These "killer cells," can target Influenza A,B, and C strains.<br></p>
What’s the breakthrough with this vaccine?
<p>In the study, which was <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-019-0320-6" target="_blank">published in <em>Nature</em>,</a> researchers identified parts of the virus that haven't changed within the past century. This is a novel and exciting approach for creating a one and done vaccine. The team started out by analyzing parts of the flu virus that were all common in each influenza strain. The goal was to find out which section would be the best target for a universal vaccine. </p><p>Professor Kedzierska states: </p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"It was really like finding a needle in a haystack. We started with 67,000 viral sequences and narrowed it down to three sequences that the killer T-cells can recognize." </p><p>Kedzierska says that although this is a major breakthrough, at this point the universal vaccine would only be effective for half of the world's population, because of the diversity of DNA, as in those who have the killer T-cells and those who have a different set.</p><p>"Now what we are working on is using similar cutting-edge technology is to find similar killer T-cells for the rest of the global population so we can protect everyone," she said. </p><p>When we are infected with a flu virus, our cells dissect the virus and extend a protein called HLA to the parts of our cells afflicted. By utilizing our common immune defense system against a universal aspect of the flu virus, we should be able to be totally immune from all future flu mutations.</p>How do flu vaccines currently work?
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTIyMTk3MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NDY2MDQ0MH0.x0l2ykuekSLKQh18PADBabMj4l0DsQzA-rS3WJ23wSA/img.jpg?width=980" id="783e1" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5e8ce216254b400aa4da19d3f02a4b29" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />The flu virus
<p>Flu vaccines create antibodies that are developed in the body about two weeks post vaccination. Once the antibodies get to work, we're provided protection by the viruses which are in the vaccine. Seasonal flu vaccines protect against that year's most prevalent and most researched common flu for the upcoming season. </p> <p>Our body's killer immune cells will maintain a remembered immunity to an infection we were previously exposed to. </p> <p>The problem is that there are new flu strains every year. That's why we keep getting sick and some people perish from the virus. The virus is constantly mutating in order to thwart our immune systems, which means new vaccinations must be created every year.</p>How many people have died from the flu last year?
<p>The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/2017-2018.htm" target="_blank">CDC reports </a>that during the 2017–2018 flu season, there was a predominant mix of influenza A followed by influenza B viruses circulating around March of 2018. The season had an unusually high level of hospitalization rates and larger proportions of pneumonia and flu-associated deaths. As per the statistics: </p><ul><li>An estimated 79,400 people died from influenza last year. </li><li>There were about 959,000 hospitalizations.</li><li>More than 22 million people went to a healthcare provider.</li><li>Highest since the 2009 H1N1 pandemic when 60 million were sick. </li></ul><p>The flu can either be a nuisance or a life-threatening event. It's good to know that we're making progress on this virus and most likely one day throw it in the dustbin of old deadly diseases.</p>
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Number of American parents not vaccinating infants has quadrupled
A measles comeback is not the sort of return our children deserve.
19 October, 2018
MIAMI, FL - OCTOBER 04: An influenza vaccination is prepared for a patient at the CVS Pharmacy store's MinuteClinic on October 4, 2018 in Miami, Florida. CVS stores will provide flu vaccinations at their MinuteClinic as well as the pharmacy and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics between now and the end of October is the best time to get vaccinated as the flu season begins. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
- The percentage of children under 2 years old who haven't received any vaccinations has quadrupled in the last 17 years.
- In 2016 in Europe there were 5,273 cases of measles. One year later that jumped to 21,315 cases.
- Discredited doctor Andrew Wakefield's false study linking vaccines and autism still influences parents, two decades later.
<p>Health care should be a public right today, especially in wealthy nations such as America, though for most of history such support systems were impossible. Social health initiatives are relatively new. Bureaucratic European states instituted such programs, but it was not until Germany introduced the "medical police" in the late 17th century that widespread programs started to take root. Johan Peter Frank helped construct the ideological underpinnings of this movement in a nine-volume series of books that took 48 years to write. </p><p>Frank was a champion of inoculation, the burgeoning practice of introducing small amounts of a disease — in this case, smallpox — into a person, which allowed their immune system build up defenses against a full-fledged ravaging virus. Inoculation itself dates back at least to ancient China; Frank was merely giving bureaucratic form to the formula. </p><p>By the middle of the 18th century, such inoculations were widespread, though an ignorance of proper dosage still lead to many deaths. While royalty and the wealthy were first in line, a physician named Edward Jenner brought it mainstream by injecting cowpox into a young boy who became immune to this ailment. Jenner called it a "vaccination," after the Latin word for "cow." </p><p>Decades later, the British Public Health Movement enforced compulsory vaccination. This led to an intense scrutiny of the major causes of disease, such as poverty, child labor, water supply, and prostitution. A linkage between our social environment and disease was forged. Public health reforms in Britain and America were instituted, with the World Health Organization being formed in 1948 to study and fight disease on a global scale. </p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="97c72e57b6ecb83f0f6d333586765bf6"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7VG_s2PCH_c?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Such efforts made a huge impact. Malaria was cut down in many countries. Perhaps the biggest victory was smallpox, whose last known case occurred in 1977. In May, 1980 the agency announced its extinction. Other chronic diseases have been greatly restricted: polio, measles, and tetanus are confined, while influenza, HPV, and chicken pox have been verified as ailments that vaccines minimize.</p><p>Then, in 1998, a now-discredited British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, was <a href="https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/antivaccine-hero-andrew-wakefield-scientific-fraud/" target="_blank">paid to falsify evidence</a> linking the MMR vaccine and autism. The paper was eventually retracted. Yet it was published during a time when conspiracy theories were growing thanks to a new communications device called the internet. Rightfully-confused and upset parents were seeking a cause to the growing number of autistic children. Wakefield offered an answer, of sorts. </p><p>Problem is, that answer didn't address the question of making us healthier. Not only do vaccines not cause autism, the anti-vax movement that has grown from his deceptive paper is making us sicker. Last year in Minnesota the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/imams-in-us-take-on-the-anti-vaccine-movement-during-ramadan/2017/05/26/8660edc6-41ad-11e7-8c25-44d09ff5a4a8_story.html?utm_term=.75815407e075" target="_blank">worst measles outbreak</a> in generations occurred in a Somali population that received false information from an anti-vaxxer group. It's not only America: in 2016 in Europe there were 5,273 cases of measles. Due to <a href="https://www.popsci.com/measles-vaccination-rates-outbreak" target="_blank">anti-vaxxer fever</a>, just one year later 21,315 people fell ill to a disease that has been successfully fought since 1960. </p><p>And now, this disturbing news was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/percentage-of-young-us-children-who-dont-receive-any-vaccines-has-quadrupled-since-2001/2018/10/11/4a9cca98-cd0d-11e8-920f-dd52e1ae4570_story.html?utm_term=.ae5f4db17854" target="_blank">recently published</a> regarding American children:</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">The percentage of children under 2 years old who haven't received any vaccinations has quadrupled in the last 17 years, according to federal health data released Thursday.</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODc0NDQ5MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0ODQ2MTYxN30.85iMPThYVIp6xooWkWPKZk_HiIA-JKooxGo0K98dKZ4/img.jpg?width=980" id="828fc" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6c75b1a5a3730fd4b08dcbc0944d74b2" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />INDONESIA-HEALTH-CHILDREN
A medical worker injects a baby with a measles-rubella (MR) vaccine at a health station in Banda Aceh in Aceh province on September 19, 2018. Photo by CHAIDEER MAHYUDDIN / AFP
<p>The CDC <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6740a4.htm?s_cid=mm6740a4_e" target="_blank">notes</a> that coverage was lowest among the uninsured and children covered under Medicaid. A free, federally-funded <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/vfc/index.html" target="_blank">Vaccines For Children</a> program exists, causing <em>The </em><em>Washington Post</em> to speculate that at least part of this issue might be education. </p><p>Yet really, this entire debacle is indicative of a lack of education. Vaccine researcher Peter Hotez, whose daughter suffers from autism, has published a book detailing the issue, in which which he <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/10/16/17964992/vaccine-autism-book-peter-hotez" target="_blank">explains</a>: </p><blockquote>From my experience, a majority of vaccine-hesitant parents are not deeply dug in. They've gotten misinformation from anti-vaccine websites and social media, or they've heard something unsavory about vaccines from friends and relatives… Then there's another group, maybe 10 to 20 percent who are deeply dug in and believe all of the fake conspiracy theories. Those individuals are really difficult to reach.</blockquote><p>For most of history, disease was ambiguous, random, metaphysical even — there is no dearth in literature relating sickness with gods and demons. It was long thought karma was the reason you fell ill or died. We know better today, yet too many people refuse to recognize this basic fact, placing their faith in biological mysticism. This is child abuse, yet sadly this is akin to smartphone addiction: we're simply not ready to label it as such on a societal scale. </p><p>Vaccine science is not perfect. Each year, the efficacy of the influenza vaccine is an educated guess. However, just because researchers haven't nailed every facet of disease does not mean we should write off the science. Millions of lives have been saved due to vaccines. Now, if current trends continues, millions more will be put at risk.</p><p>The majority of American children are vaccinated. I've heard complaints by a number of friends whose children are put on a rigorous schedule from birth; their skepticism of the validity of this approach is warranted. We should debate courses. We should not, however, debate basic science, such as vaccinating children for measles or polio. Parents putting their children at risk due to their own lack of common sense is not only unfair, it's dangerous.</p><p>--</p><p><span></span><em>Stay in touch with Derek on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/derekberes" target="_blank">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DerekBeresdotcom" target="_blank">Facebook</a>.</em></p>
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Why experts are certain another influenza pandemic will occur
It's been 100 years since the world's last deadliest flu pandemic. Experts warn that another one is inevitable, but are we ready?
18 October, 2018
- 100 years ago, the Spanish Flu killed over 50 million people.
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 80,000 Americans died of the flu last winter.
- Experts stress that the world needs to take precautions and prepare for the next pandemic.
<p>Humans have been fighting the influenza virus for millenia. We've discovered new strains throughout the years and also <a href="https://bigthink.com/news/a-flu-drug-that-kills-the-virus-in-24-hours-is-just-around-the-corner" target="_self">devised greater methods for eradicating</a> them along the way. But on the 100th year anniversary of the Spanish Flu pandemic, it's more important now than ever that we look back at one of the deadliest pandemics the world has ever faced. </p><p>Our global village is tied together in such a way that it makes containing a localized infection nearly impossible. Through air, freight-train and onwards through land and sea, the most populous and densely packed cities in the world are now just a stone's throw away. </p><p>The possibility that another epidemic could sweep through the world and claim millions of lives is no surprise to the experts. After all, it's happened before. </p>
History of the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODczOTUzMS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NjI3MjAyNH0.yssTkvJY3QgwANQ_-QDhDLuamLYJ32VewXNQSlRHbzg/img.jpg?width=980" id="58916" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="1195e8e98e4ca9687f36ad12c63f4c70" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" /><p>Let's look back at how the Spanish flu first got its start. </p><p>It was the fall of 1918 and the First Great War in Europe was just winding down. Americans had been shipped overseas and were helping assist the Allies as they fought against the Germans. Soldiers around the globe dug out and wintered through trenches in horrible and brutal conditions. They had probably thought they'd seen the worst of things by this point. </p><p>Lurking just somewhere over the horizon, however, was one of the deadliest flus the world would ever face. </p><p>Over a third of the world's population became infected. Erupting in pockets around the globe the outbreaks swept through Asia, Europe, Africa and America by bustling trade routes. Many also suspected rapid troop movement assisted in the spread of the disease. Around 675,000 Americans died of influenza during the two year pandemic. </p><p>The intensity and speed in which the pandemic struck was unfathomable at the time. With over 500 million people infected and an estimated 50 million deaths worldwide, the global death toll eclipsed even World War I casualties. The disease is not "Spanish" in origin per say, but because of wartime censorship in other countries, Spain was the first to report of the pandemic. </p><p>Our most recent flu seasons pale in comparison to the great plight wrought from the Spanish flu.</p>Latest trends in America’s flu seasons
<p>For the most part, vaccinations, antibiotics and better global hygiene has drastically reduced the effects of influenza and other associated diseases. But viruses never rest — and they never stop evolving. </p><p>Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have estimated that a preliminary figure of last year's winter flu season was around 80,000 deaths. This figure may be revised, but it's unlikely the numbers will go down. Dr. Daniel Jernigan, a CDC flu expert, believes that the deaths were higher than usual because there are both more Americans and more elderly people now.</p><p>Luckily, Jernigan believes that <a href="http://www.who.int/influenza/surveillance_monitoring/updates/latest_update_GIP_surveillance/en/" target="_blank">next year's flu season </a>is stacking up to be both a milder strain and also more receptive to vaccination. "We don't know what's going to happen," he said, "but we're seeing more encouraging signs than we were early last year."</p><p>While we might be all right for the upcoming flu season. Others warn that a hidden virus could jumpstart a new global pandemic.<br></p>The U.S is not ready for a major pandemic
<p>One of the worst case scenarios in the short term, could be the release of a hidden, lethal and highly infectious flu strain that breaks out into a crowded city. According to the John Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health, this would be devastating for an unprepared city that lacked a strong public health infrastructure.</p><p>A fast moving virus could hitch a ride from one city to a next and spread internationally before health officials even knew what hit humanity. Scientists at John Hopkins believe that avian influenza viruses pose the greatest risk if they evolve into deadlier strains. Amesh Adalja from the Center of Healthy Security at John Hopkins states: "In terms of pandemic potential, an avian influenza virus is thought to be a likely candidate, based on prior pandemics."</p><p>Yet, there are safeguards that didn't exist 100 years ago we can use to preemptively ward off a potential flu pandemic. </p><p>For example we can:</p><ul><li>Improve vaccine research and deployment. Funding for high-priority vaccines is a must to create herd immunity. </li><li>Increase pandemic preparation funding. Public health officials need to be able to deal with a multiple of infected at once.</li><li>Create a global response network that can quickly intervene in a pandemic. For example, the World Health Organization (WHO) needs a counterpart that can take action once any kind of pandemic has been declared. </li></ul><p>The more we do to combat these diseases now, the less risk we have for another worldwide pandemic later.</p>
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