PANDEMIC VACCINE REMAINS A LONG WAY OFF

Efforts to develop bird flu vaccines are being stepped up in western countries, but health experts say these are unlikely to be effective against a human pandemic. If the virus were to spread to humans, a new vaccine would need to be developed -- a process that could take six to nine months, according to the World Health Organization.

Swissinfo (http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=107&sid=6530130&cKey=1141823111000)