Use of canine cells in flu vaccine development debated
Executive Summary
The Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will discuss the use of Madin-Darby canine kidney cells in the manufacturing of live attenuated influenza virus vaccines. When the committee met in 2005 to discuss using the cells, it overwhelmingly agreed that companies should move forward with development, but also recommended that studies be done in animals inoculated with the final vaccine product (1"The Pink Sheet," Nov. 21, 2005, p. 22). It also recommended monitoring patients because of potential oncogenic risks from the tumorigenic canine cell lines