GlaxoSmithKline Plc., Europe's leading drug manufacturer, and US biotech firm Corixa Corp. said Wednesday they plan to launch the first human test of a genetically engineered TB vaccine. The vaccine, which contains a fusion of proteins from the bacteria that causes TB, has produced good results in lab animals. Twenty volunteers will be enrolled in the US Phase I trial to assess the product's safety and the immune response it generates. A long-established TB vaccine, BCG, was developed 80 years ago, and some scientists say it is only about 50 percent effective. World Health Organization statistics show that 2 million people die annually from TB; some 8 million become sick from it each year.

Back to other news for January 15, 2004

Search the Newsroom archive