Recent Avian Influenza H5N1 outbreaks in India have happened in 2021, 2023 and 2024
The Indian Council of Medical Research is working on a vaccine that works against Avian Influenza H5N1, a highly pathogenic strain of bird flu. It has invited the private sector to partner with it in the development of the vaccine.
Recent Avian Influenza H5N1 outbreaks in India have happened in 2021, 2023 and 2024. The infection in humans, though rare, has a high fatality rate, with one of every two people infected with it standing a risk of dying.
Inviting proposals from private companies who may be interested in jointly developing the vaccine, ICMR said: “The ICMR-National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV), Pune, one of the constituent institutes of the Indian Council of Medical Research, is actively working on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses. Well Characterized strains of HPAI H5N1 are available at the laboratory. The ICMR-NIV team possesses expertise in outbreak investigations, avian influenza surveillance, virological and molecular characterization, vaccine candidate development through virus inactivation and molecular methods, and conducting preclinical trials using BALB/c mice. The institute also specializes in laboratory testing to evaluate antibody responses to vaccines during phases II, III, and IV clinical trials.”
The PPP model of vaccine development has been explored very successfully in the past by ICMR when it partnered Bharat Biotech for Covaxin – an indigenously developed vaccine for COVID19. It was a part of India’s immunisation programme along with Covishield.
For the H5N1 vaccine ICMR institutes will provide expert guidance & technical support at all stages. The company will do product development, validation and manufacturing scale up but intellectual property rights, in case of commercialisation, will remain with ICMR.
