Vietnam produces human H5N1 vaccines in labs

A Vietnamese vaccine institute announced it has successfully turned out 5,000 doses of H5N1 vaccine for humans in labs, Vietnam News Agency reported Wednesday.

The vaccines produced by the Nha Trang Institute of Vaccines and Biological Products in central Khanh Hoa province have yielded good results after being tested on white mice, guinea-pigs and cockerels. They have been sent to Vietnam's National Institute of Verification of Vaccines and Biological Products.

Nguyen Thi Minh Hien, who is directly involved in the vaccine research, said the institute will produce another 5,000 doses of the vaccine in early 2007 for tests at international verification centers. If successful, the institute will propose to test on humans.

Vietnam has detected 93 bird flu patients, including 42 fatalities, in 32 localities since the disease started to hit the country in December 2003, the Vietnamese Health Ministry said on Nov. 21, noting that it has seen no new human cases of infections since mid-November 2005.

Source: Xinhua