Towards the farewell to the annual flu vaccine, the booster will not be needed

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the institutes belonging to the American NIH, has announced that it has started testing a universal mRNA vaccine against influenza.
"A universal flu vaccine - commented Hugh Auchincloss, head of NIAID - would be an important achievement for public health and could eliminate both the need for the annual development of seasonal flu vaccines, and the need for patients to undergo a flu vaccine every year" The study involves the enrollment of 50 volunteers between 18 and 49 years old. In a first phase, the most effective dosage will be defined and then the new product will be compared with the quadrivalent seasonal vaccine already in use to verify the ability to protect against influenza.
The new vaccine aims to boost immunity against influenza by using a portion of a protein characteristic of influenza viruses: hemagglutinin. This protein has two portions: one that evolves very quickly and one that is more stable and has very similar characteristics in different influenza viruses. The new vaccine uses this second portion; This could make it able to offer lasting protection against multiple influenza viruses.
"Some strains of the influenza virus have significant pandemic potential. A universal flu vaccine could serve as an important line of defense against the spread of a future flu pandemic."