US government continues preparations for influenza pandemic

The US Department of Health and Human Services says that Sanofi-Pasteur, the vaccines business of French drug major Sanofi-Aventis, has completed the delivery of a batch of H5N1 influenza vaccine, as dictated by the $100.0 million supply contract signed with the firm last year (Marketletter April 11, 2005), adding that the consignment included investigational versions of the vaccine formulated with an adjuvant.

The shipment, which was sent directly to the National Institutes of Health, is comprised of 15,000 doses of the product. The vaccine has been prepared with a range of different antigen concentrations and will be used in the NIH's influenza clinical study program to determine the most effective composition, in terms of immune response.

The adjuvant, aluminum hydroxide, is included to increase the vaccine's effectiveness and may, according to Sanofi-Pasteur, enable the use of less viral antigen in each dose. The Department also says that Sanofi-Pasteur has prepared a bulk supply of the antigen for stockpiling, valued at $50.0 million, for rapid vaccine production when the optimal dosage is determined.