A panel of experts at the Health,
Labor and Welfare Ministry will start producing a vaccine for the H7N9 strain
of avian influenza, following a number of reported cases of human infections in
China.
The ministry will base the
vaccine on a vaccine strain produced by the National Institute of Infectious
Diseases, while seeking cooperation from vaccine makers. Production work will
start within this month, at the earliest.
The ministry will first test the
vaccine on animals and then decide whether to conduct clinical trials on humans
after examining the results.
It remains unclear when
production will be completed because it is difficult to make a vaccine that can
provide immunity against H7 type flu viruses, according to officials at the
ministry.
No human-to-human spread of the
H7N9 flu has been confirmed so far, but experts warn that genetic mutations in
the virus could increase transmissions between humans and could lead to a
pandemic.
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