USDA officials say they are talking with poultry industry leaders about the logistics of a mass H5N1 avian influenza vaccination campaign, and tests of vaccines are underway. A virulent, deadly clade of H5N1 has killed or caused the culling of at least 58 million farmed birds in the US, but vaccinating could trigger export restrictions. Ultimately, however, vaccinating poultry would prevent transmission to humans and possibly prevent a pandemic, say avian influenza expert Robert Webster, influenza virologist Anice Lowen and other experts.
