Targeting B cell responses in universal influenza vaccine design

Abstract

Since its first administration in the 1940s, the influenza vaccine has provided tremendous relief against influenza infections. However, time has revealed the ultimate limit of the vaccine and the call for its reinvention has now come, just as we are beginning to appreciate the antibody immune responses vital in preventing infections. New strategies to design the influenza vaccine rely on selectively inducing broadly neutralizing antibodies that are specific for highly conserved viral epitopes. Such approaches take us away from the limited range of protection provided by current seasonal influenza vaccines and towards a future with a pan-influenza vaccine capable of providing universal strain coverage.