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Trial MVA85A - monkey trials for a booster vaccine for BCG, developed by researchers at Oxford University, is the subject of an investigation published on bmj.com. Experts warn that today's investigation is just one example of “a systematic failure” afflicting preclinical research and call for urgent action “to make animal research more fit for purpose as a valuable and reliable forerunner to clinical research in humans.” The press conference is led by Dr Fiona Godlee, the editor-in-chief of the BMJ, who provides a background to the investigation. The panel members are: Dr Deborah Cohen, author of the investigation and associate editor at the BMJ, talking about carrying out the investigation and the difficulty to obtain basic information Professor Paul Garner from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, addressing the ineffectiveness of the current TB vaccine and also talking about the backlash he experienced after publishing a systematic review concluding that the animal studies results had been overstated Malcolm Macleod, from the University of Edinburgh, talking about the broader public health aspect Merel Ritskes-Hoitinga from the Department for Health Evidence in The Netherlands, addressing the quality of animal studies and the need for systematic reviews and Jonathan Kimmelman, from McGill University in Canada analysing the story from the perspective of biomedical ethics.
Around 1.5 million people die from tuberculosis each year. The Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine was introduced nearly a hundred years ago, but is only partially effective against the bacterium that causes TB. With so many infected and the BCG vaccine only 60% effective, a race is on to develop a better way of preventing TB. Hundreds of millions of public and philanthropic money has been poured into this quest. For researchers, the competition for this pot of money is fierce. A new vaccine called MVA85A developed by scientists in Oxford as a booster to BCG was heralded as a possible solution. But when it was trialed on nearly 3000 infants in South Africa it didn't offer any further significant protection. File on 4 investigates the outcome of tests carried out on monkeys and asks to what extent animal trials are used to help decide whether to go on to test in humans. How do regulators and ethics committees decide to give their approval and who is looking out for the people who volunteer to take part? Reporter: Deborah Cohen Producer: Paul Grant.
A career in juggling, organisation and guilt management Professor Helen McShane has been working on a new TB vaccine for 10 years. There are about 9 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths every year from tuberculosis. She developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. Developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy.
A career in juggling, organisation and guilt management Professor Helen McShane has been working on a new TB vaccine for 10 years. There are about 9 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths every year from tuberculosis. She developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. Developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy.
A career in juggling, organisation and guilt management Professor Helen McShane has been working on a new TB vaccine for 10 years. There are about 9 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths every year from tuberculosis. She developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. Developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy.
What are the best ways to control the global problem of tuberculosis? Professor Helen McShane from the Jenner Institute tells us about the MVA85A tuberculosis vaccine from her lab that’s currently undergoing large-scale clinical trials and the impact it could have on the incidence of TB around the world. This episode of Microbe Talk has been produced for World TB Day on Saturday 24 March.
Dr Helen McShane has been working on a new TB vaccine for 10 years. She explains why developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy. There are about 9 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths every year from tuberculosis. Dr Helen McShane developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. BCG, now over 100 years old, remains the only licensed vaccine against Tuberculosis. It confers good protection against severe disease and meningitis but doesn't protect against lung disease. MVA85A was the first vaccine of the new generation to enter into efficacy testing. It is currently being tested in The Gambia, Senegal and South Africa.
Dr Helen McShane has been working on a new TB vaccine for 10 years. She explains why developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy. There are about 9 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths every year from tuberculosis. Dr Helen McShane developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. BCG, now over 100 years old, remains the only licensed vaccine against Tuberculosis. It confers good protection against severe disease and meningitis but doesn't protect against lung disease. MVA85A was the first vaccine of the new generation to enter into efficacy testing. It is currently being tested in The Gambia, Senegal and South Africa.
Professor Helen McShane talks about her work on a new vaccine against tuberculosis. There are about 9 million new cases and two million deaths every year from tuberculosis (TB). BCG, now over 100 years old, remains the only licensed vaccine against TB. It confers good protection against severe disease and meningitis, but doesn't protect against lung disease. After working on TB for 10 years, Professor Helen McShane developed MVA85A, a vaccine with the aim to boost the cellular immune response induced by BCG. Professor McShane explains why developing countries are especially in need of a new vaccine since HIV and TB epidemics overlap and show a devastating synergy.