Progress in respiratory virus vaccine development.
Viral respiratory infections continue to cause significant morbidity and mortality in infants and young children as well as in at-risk adults and the elderly. Although many viral pathogens are capable of causing acute respiratory disease, vaccine development has to focus on a limited number of pathogens (i.e., agents that commonly cause serious lower respiratory disease). Inactivated and, more recently, live attenuated influenza virus vaccines are the mainstay of interpandemic influenza prevention, but vaccines are not available yet for other important viruses such as respiratory syncytial virus, metapneumovirus, the parainfluenza viruses, and avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential. Reverse genetics systems that allow rational vaccine development are now widely used, and considerable progress has been made in preclinical and clinical development of novel respiratory virus vaccines.
Schmidt
Alexander C
AC
Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-8007, USA. schmidta@niaid.nih.gov
D035843:Biomedical Research; D006801:Humans; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014765:Viral Vaccines; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*
D014765:Viral Vaccines