Drug firm starts work on swine flu vaccine

Source: Xinhua  |   2009-6-5  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

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A CHINESE drug firm has received seed viruses of swine flu from the World Health Organization and has started work on a vaccine, the State Food and Drug Administration said yesterday.

Hualan Biological Engineering Inc, the only firm qualified to produce pandemic vaccines, received seed viruses from a WHO lab on Wednesday night, said Yin Hongzhang, head of the SFDA biology production office, in an interview with Xinhua news agency.

Hualan has started producing undiluted vaccine solution, Fan Bei, Hualan's deputy general manager, told Xinhua. "We will arrange the production according to the guidance of the SFDA and WHO," Fan said.

The first batch of vaccines may be ready by late July.

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