Will Bird Flu Become the Next Pandemic? Vaccines Are Prepared for the Unexpected Situation

Introduction

Holly Springs, North Carolina — This summer, a quiet effort to prevent the next global pandemic began rolling off an assembly line behind the gates of a suburban Raleigh office complex. Workers at CSL Seqirus are bottling millions of doses of a new vaccine designed to combat the H5N1 bird flu virus in this sprawling factory surrounded by thick pine groves.

The virus, which first appeared in wild birds around 1997, has spread this year to dairy and poultry farms across the United States. Thirteen farmworkers have been infected with the virus this year, with some experiencing eye redness and others coughing. No one became ill enough to require hospitalization, but in other countries, approximately half of those diagnosed with H5N1 over the years have died.

Virus Spread and Infections

The virus is not spreading from person to person, which is why public health officials aren't panicking. Because the risk to the general public remains low, the federal government does not believe it is worthwhile to vaccinate anyone against H5N1 at this time, including farmworkers who are most vulnerable to contracting the virus from infected chickens or cattle.

But, behind the scenes, officials are preparing at Seqirus' advanced facility in Holly Springs, a biomanufacturing hub. Already, 4.8 million doses of a potential vaccine are stored in an undisclosed Seqirus distribution center, ready for delivery if necessary.

Vaccine Production

"An exercise like this gives our partners a chance to exercise that muscle, to make sure that the manufacturing's there," Dawn O'Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response for the US Department of Health and Human Services, told USA TODAY during an exclusive tour of the vaccine factory in late July. In previous disease outbreaks, she stated that getting enough vaccine made in time to stop individual infections and slow disease spread has been the government's "Achilles' heel." [Image: Close-up of vaccine vials highlighting large-scale production] So, in the heart of North Carolina's coveted Research Triangle, winding conveyor belts and hanging robotic arms fill one thumb-sized glass vial at a time to prevent the next global pandemic.

International Response

True success would mean that the contents of those vials could eventually be flushed down the toilet, as bird flu no longer poses a theoretical threat to human health. However, at a time when the virus appears to be spreading to new farms every week, when America's healthcare system and treatment of farmworkers means infections are likely going undetected, and the fall flu season is quickly approaching, public health officials say there is no such thing as being too cautious. "You want to prepare for the worst case," said Dr. Raj Panjabi, who oversaw pandemic preparedness at the White House from 2021 to 2023 as President Joe Biden's special assistant. "This gets the engine moving."

On the production line at the Seqirus facility, scores of workers in white zip-up plastic suits, hairnets, and goggles worked along conveyor belts transporting small tubes along a packaging line. Seqirus' packaging lines can produce 2 million flu vaccine doses every two weeks, according to Jonathan Kegerise, vice president of manufacturing and site manager at the Holly Springs facility. The 4.8 million H5N1 doses were scheduled between batches of seasonal flu shots and had no effect on their production.

Where Are We Now?

Robotic arms filled and capped vials while workers watched and prepared machines for the next batch. Along the way, lights flashed as cameras took images of the vials for quality assurance. If the federal government determined that H5N1 vaccines were required, they would be subjected to additional inspections before being packed and ready for shipment.

Recently, federal officials launched a campaign to vaccinate livestock workers against seasonal flu. The vaccine does not protect against H5N1, a different strain of influenza, according to Shah from the CDC. However, receiving the seasonal vaccine may prevent someone from contracting both the highly contagious seasonal flu and the extremely dangerous H5N1. Flu viruses are known to exchange genes with one another, so such a combination is always feasible.