Vaccines aimed to protect against many different flu strains
Official title: Development of vaccination strategies to elicit broadly protective immunity against influenza
Funded at Rockefeller University · NIH-11139532 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Developing new flu vaccines designed to give longer-lasting protection against many different flu strains for people at risk of the flu.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rockefeller University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | June 18, 2019 |
| Project end | June 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $845,133 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI145870-07 |
| Project ID | NIH-11139532 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for later-stage trials would include adults at risk for influenza or healthy volunteers willing to receive an investigational flu vaccine.
✕Less likely to help
People who are not eligible for vaccine trials—such as some young infants, certain pregnant people, or individuals with severe immune system disorders—may not directly benefit from participation.
What this research studies
Researchers are redesigning the flu virus surface protein called hemagglutinin (HA) to steer the immune system toward parts that are shared across many flu strains. They create 'mosaic' HA proteins that reduce responses to the variable head and highlight the conserved stalk, then test those immunogens in the lab and in preclinical models and with human-derived samples. The team measures B cell and antibody responses to see if those changes produce broader, longer-lived protection instead of narrow, strain-specific immunity. If successful, this approach could form the basis of a universal flu vaccine that works against seasonal and pandemic strains.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to a universal flu vaccine that prevents many seasonal and pandemic influenza infections and reduces hospitalizations and deaths.
How similar studies have gone: Approaches that focus immune responses on the conserved HA stalk have shown promise in animal studies and some early human work, but a truly universal flu vaccine has not yet been achieved.
Where this research is happening
-
Rockefeller University
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ravetch, Jeffrey Victor — Rockefeller University
- Study coordinator: Ravetch, Jeffrey Victor
Related research
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.