The National Institutes of Health (NIH) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a new platform, created by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), to aid the agencies in preparing for future pandemics.
The platform, Generation Gold Standard, will fund “NIH’s in-house development of universal influenza and coronavirus vaccines, including candidates BPL-1357 and BPL-24910.” The vaccines are supposed to protect against several current and future strains of the viruses. The platform will use “a beta-propiolactone (BPL)-inactivated, whole-virus platform.”
Additionally, Generation Gold Standard can be used for other conditions like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), metapneumovirus, and parainfluenza, according to the NIH. Universal flu vaccine trials are on schedule to begin next year.
