Flu institutes plan to create vaccine against H1N1 virus

In in a bid to create a vaccine against the deadly HINI virus, scientists at the St Petersburg Flu Research Institute have requested the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, Atlanta),to share with them details of the highly pathogenic A/H1N1/ virus strain.     

"After we have received biological material from US, we will study the genetic structure of the mutant virus. Based on the data we are going to obtain, we will create a sufficiently effective vaccine," Institutes academic secretary Tamara Lobova told Itar-Tass.     

"It may take three to five months to complete this process from development to production of the anti-viral vaccine," Lobova added.     

On the other hand All-Russia Research Institute of Veterinary Virology and Microbiology has already begun work to create a vaccine for the same.     

"We thought about an anti-virus when the so-called avian flu appeared. Our scientists suggested that if pigs were infected with the avian flue, we should expect a new virus to emerge," institute's chief consultant Igor Bakumov said.     

However the Siberian research and production company Vektor-best, one of the biggest developers of human disease diagnostic systems, has no plans to create a test for virus     

"It will take more than a year to develop a test, and another year, as a minimum, will be needed for its registration. During this the type A (H1N1) flu virus will most likely mutate because the flu germ is genetically very mutable," company Deputy Director-General Yuri Gusev said.