Current and future influenza vaccines

• Published in: Nature medicine Vol. 25; no. 2; pp. 212 - 220
• Main Authors: Yamayoshi, Seiya, Kawaoka, Yoshihiro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Nature Publishing Group US 01.02.2019; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/250/24/590; 631/326/596/2554; 692/699/255/1578; Antiviral agents; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cancer Research; Care and treatment; Development and progression; Drug development; Drug resistance; Economic aspects; Epidemics; Host-Pathogen Interactions - immunology; Humans; Infectious Diseases; Influenza; Influenza vaccines; Influenza Vaccines - immunology; Influenza, Human - epidemiology; Influenza, Human - prevention & control; Influenza, Human - virology; Metabolic Diseases; Molecular Medicine; Neurosciences; Orthomyxoviridae - physiology; Pandemics; Review Article; Vaccines; Viruses
• ISSN: 1078-8956; 1546-170X; 1546-170X
• DOI: 10.1038/s41591-018-0340-z

Although antiviral drugs and vaccines have reduced the economic and healthcare burdens of influenza, influenza epidemics continue to take a toll. Over the past decade, research on influenza viruses has revealed a potential path to improvement. The clues have come from accumulated discoveries from basic and clinical studies. Now, virus surveillance allows researchers to monitor influenza virus epidemic trends and to accumulate virus sequences in public databases, which leads to better selection of candidate viruses for vaccines and early detection of drug-resistant viruses. Here we provide an overview of current vaccine options and describe efforts directed toward the development of next-generation vaccines. Finally, we propose a plan for the development of an optimal influenza vaccine. The universal flu vaccine remains elusive, but there are several strategies that scientists can take to develop one, including closer monitoring of viral evolution.