A Swiss medical company has patented antibodies for the treatment or prevention of the influenza A virus.

Influenza is widespread worldwide and causes three to five million cases per year and 290000 to 650000 respiratory deaths. Influenza A viruses cause the most serious diseases. There are at least 18 known influenza A virus subtypes, which are characterized by their hemagglutinin (HA) proteins.

Recent influenza vaccines mainly elicit an immune response against the “head” of HA, which evolves rapidly. In general, such vaccines provide protection only for a few years, thus it’s necessary to reconstitute influenza vaccines every year.

Medical company Humabs Biomed SA has discovered new antibodies that combat the influenza A virus, even if injected in very low amounts. Experts have found that these antibodies survive longer in the body and they are more effective in fighting the disease than prototypes.

Experts have so far tested the effectiveness and curative effect of the discovered antibodies on animals. But this is only the first step toward creating a new vaccine.

This new development obtained the 48000th Eurasian patent and will cover 8 Eurasian states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.