Nature Article Series: Stopping the Next Pandemic

New advances in fields ranging from structural biology to immunology, and bioinformatics to bioengineering are fueling research and a push for a universal influenza vaccine. In Influenzer’s first article with Nature Media published in February of 2021, we discuss progress made since the swine flu pandemic in 2009 and the changes needed to protect against the next influenza pandemic.

COVID-19 vaccines arrived faster than any vaccine before it. In Influenzer’s second Nature article, the ongoing success story of COVID-19’s vaccine research and development provides lessons for producing vaccines that could save millions in the next influenza pandemic.

The vaccine R&D community had to move quickly to fight the COVID-19 emergency and create a viable vaccine, but it also revealed the weaknesses in the R&D ecosystem. In this third article published November 2021, necessary changes to the vaccine pipeline and their challenges are presented.

Vaccines are one of the most successful public health measures ever designed. Understanding their full value could steer investment in the right direction. In Influenzer’s last article with Nature Custom Media, the benefits of vaccine innovation to the workforce are inspected.