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April 16, 2003

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"Persuading Big Business to Help Look for a Vaccine"

New York Times (www.nytimes.com) (04/16/03) P. A6; Pollack, Andrew

The U.S. government's efforts to get help from private companies for the development of a vaccine to prevent or battle severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the deadly virus that has already infected thousands of people and killed 154 worldwide, could encounter similar problems as other attempted joint public-private vaccine or bioterror defense development initiatives: the companies lack interest in sinking precious development funds and manpower into projects that may or may not provide significant financial return.  Some vaccine companies, like Aventis Pasteur, have helped in secondary ways, providing information to the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but not signing up as yet for a full development cooperation project.  Even many smaller companies like Aviron, a California vaccine firm, are reticent about joining a potentially long-term project for such a questionable financial reward.  Still, some small groups are considering heeding the call of the federal government, as the project could be one that helps them survive; indeed, a significant number of companies must be looking into the matter, as the American Type Culture Collection, a biological repository, has apparently sold out of virus cultures that resemble SARS.

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