Swine protection

A team of researchers from Iowa State University is putting flu vaccines into the genetic makeup of corn, which may someday allow pigs and humans to get a flu vaccination simply by eating corn or corn products.

'We're trying to figure out which genes from the swine influenza virus to incorporate into corn so those genes, when expressed, would produce protein.

'When the pig consumes that corn, it would serve as a vaccine,' said Hank Harris, professor in animal science and one of the researchers on the project.

The project is a collaborative effort with Harris and Brad Bosworth, an affiliate associate professor of animal science working with pigs, and Kan Wang, a professor in agronomy, who is developing the vaccine traits in the corn.

The corn vaccine would also work in humans when they eat corn or even corn flakes, corn chips, tortillas or anything that contains corn, said Harris.