By Jay Meisel
Meisel@hometownnewsol.com
PORT ST. LUCIE - VGTI Florida scientists hope their research will help prevent the delayed development of future flu vaccines, as was the case this year with H1N1.
Working with Martin Memorial Health Systems, the scientists began a research project aimed at not only speeding up production of vaccines, but developing more effective ones.
VTGI Florida is located in Tradition and focuses on vaccine research.
Lydie Trautmann, the scientist who proposed the research, said the project involves studying the immune system and how it reacts to the flu virus and vaccines.
"The more information and data we collect, the more understanding we will have," she said.
It's possible in two to five years the study will produce tangible results, Dr. Trautmann said.
Martin Memorial's participation involves collecting blood samples of patients and providing them to VGTI for analysis, said Wendy Ryzner, clinical research site supervisor.
Patients must consent to participate, she said, and they are asked to return and donate blood again in 30 days.
The samples are being collected from people with flu-like symptoms, those who have the symptoms and receive a positive test for the flu, and those who receive vaccines. The latter will be divided into categories of people getting either the seasonal or H1N1 vaccine or both.
By the end of flu season, Ms. Ryzner said, the goal is to collect samples from 270 patients.
Dr. Trautmann said she and other scientists will analyze the samples to study the body's immune system reaction to the virus and the vaccines.
Part of the aim is to determine which parts of the immune system are active in fighting the virus and developing a vaccine that would recruit all parts of the immune system to react at the same time to the virus, she said.
The study will also look at the "memory" the immune system retains of the infection, Dr. Trautmann said.
By better understanding all of that, she said, they hope to find ways to develop vaccines earlier that can be administered before the virus mutates.
"Better understanding of this will have a crucial impact," she said.
The formulation and testing vaccines would be accelerated by this process, said John Schatzle, manager of scientific affairs for VGTI.
Also, Dr. Trautmann said, scientists want to help with developing more effective vaccines, as the ones that are currently developed do not prevent a person from getting the disease 100 percent of the time.
The research could help with developing vaccines for AIDS and other diseases, she said.
"Sometimes you do research in one field and it's applicable to another field," Dr. Trautmann added.
One challenge is obtaining the necessary number of blood samples, she said.
The aim is to prevent the disease in humans, so it is crucial to get samples from people, Dr. Trautmann said.
Anyone interested in participating can call (772) 288-5858 and press the number 4. Those who participate will receive a $25 gasoline card to cover transportation expenses.