San Diego-based Vical is reporting early-stage success with a new bird flu vaccine that relies on engineered bacteria to produce genes of the H5N1 virus. The DNA is combined with an adjuvant in a new manufacturing process that will be considerably swifter than the egg-based process now commonly in use. And as one of the gene ingredients in this vaccine stays in every strain of bird flu that evolves, it may also have much broader applicability in the event of a pandemic. Vical report