BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhuanet)-- US scientists have claimed on Sunday the success in the test in people of a vaccine that they believe can protect against an avian flu outbreak.

US government scientists say they have successfully tested in people a vaccine that they believe can protect against the strain of avian influenza that is spreading in birds through Asia and Russia.

    US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci said the findings were a step forward but did not overcome the major hurdle of producing enough vaccine to meet demand in the event of a flu pandemic.

    "It's an important landmark in the broader plan of how you prepare a nation for pandemic flu," Dr Fauci said.

    And he cautioned: "We don't have all the vaccine we need to meet the possible demand. The critical issue now is, 'Can we make enough vaccine, given the well-known inability of the vaccine industry to make enough vaccine?'"

    Preliminary data from the first 115 of the initial tests on 450 healthy adults showed an immune response that scientists believe is strong enough to protect against the avian influenza.

    Fauci said he expects analysis of data from the other 300 tests will show similar results.

    The US Government has ordered 2 million doses of the vaccine from Sanofi-Aventis for a national stockpile and is negotiating with the company to order more, Dr Fauci said. 

    According to the reports of The New York Times, although a few cases might have been transmitted from person to person in Asia, the A(H5N1) strain had not garnered enough strength to spread widely among humans anywhere. Enditem

    (Agencies)