If you’re one of the estimated 1 in 5 Americans who catch the flu each year, you might have a better chance at fighting off future versions of the virus, according to a new
University of Georgia study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
The flu virus’s ability to constantly evolve and develop new and more virulent strains makes it difficult to fight, and scientists have to make educated guesses about which strains are most likely to be circulating ahead of each flu season to develop the vaccine.
“Overall, the preexisting immunity you develop through natural infection helps to strengthen immune responses,” said Ye Shen, study corresponding author and a professor in the UGA College of Public Health. “We didn’t fully understand how preexisting immunity through natural infection with different influenza strains changes vaccine-elicited immune responses before this study.”
Researchers tested vaccines made of various flu strains. They found when animals were infected with one strain of the flu, the animals had a heightened immune response when given a vaccine targeting that same strain.
But overall immunity also improved significantly when the animals were given a vaccine targeting a different flu strain, after being infected with the original strain of the virus.
With the body protecting itself against one strain with its natural immune response and the vaccine eliciting broader immune responses to a spectrum of flu strains, the body was better shielded.
This research is part of a larger, seven-year NIH-funded study that aims to create universal influenza vaccines for vulnerable populations.
Published in the journal Vaccine, the study was co-authored by Yao Lu, who also conducted much of the data analysis, and Andreas Handel, from the UGA College of Public Health, and Ted Ross, of the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine. Additional co-authors include Yang Ge, James D. Allen, Tal Einav, Dennis I. Nkaleke and Fengwei Bai.