CSL Seqirus has announced a strengthened partnership with the UK government that will see the UK become the first country in the world to introduce AUJEMFLU (aTIVc), the company’s adjuvanted cell-based seasonal influenza vaccine.
The new vaccine is recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and will be introduced to the annual influenza vaccination programme from next year (2027/28). Its introduction marks a significant advance in the evolution of seasonal influenza prevention for adults aged 65 years and over as well as at-risk adults aged 50 to 64 years who are more vulnerable to the complications of influenza.
This is the first influenza vaccine to combine three proven approaches to enhancing protection for older adults in a single vaccine: MF59 adjuvant, cell-based manufacturing, and a higher dose formulation, compared to standard influenza vaccines.
Each of these approaches has been used separately in influenza vaccines for many years and is supported by extensive clinical and real-world evidence. This publication provides the first large-scale evaluation of their combination within a single vaccine.
Influenza remains a significant public health challenge, causing substantial illness, hospitalisations and deaths each year despite widespread vaccination programmes. Older adults are particularly vulnerable because the immune system becomes less responsive with age, reducing its ability to mount a strong protective response following vaccination.
Despite the positive impact of the annual vaccination programme in the UK, which is estimated to have prevented 104,000 hospital admissions and 7,100 deaths in England during winter 2025/26, influenza continues to place a significant burden on older adults, vulnerable populations and health services. According to the latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), there were an estimated 3,798 excess deaths associated with influenza in England during the 2025/26 season.
Together with the world-first introduction of aTIVc, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has extended its pandemic Advance Purchase Agreement (APA) with CSL Seqirus for a further four years until 2031, reinforcing its influenza pandemic and outbreak preparedness and response capability that leverages the UK’s largest and only end-to-end vaccine manufacturing at its Liverpool site in northern England.
Under the renewed advance purchase agreement (APA), the UK government would have the option to purchase more than 100 million doses of pandemic influenza vaccine from CSL Seqirus should a WHO-declared influenza pandemic occur, with manufacturing based entirely at the company’s Liverpool facility.