# Flu vaccine question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flu-vaccine-question/710194>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 18, 2015, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flu-vaccine-question/710194 "2015-01-18T18:58:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\
**Post date:** [January 17, 2018, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flu-vaccine-question/710194/21 "2018-01-17T14:06:02Z")

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> [@Broomstick](#):
>
> Now, it used to be that something like a measles vaccination would be “for life” because the average person _would_ be exposed to the disease from time to time, acting as a sort of natural booster. Now that we have beaten back such disease so thoroughly we’re finding adults are loosing their immunities due to lack of re-exposure.

Is that the reason? I’ve heard that older measles vaccine was “less good” formulae than the modern MMR, and that often the second, years-later shot was forgotten, hence the current campaign for adults to get the second (now MMR) vaccination shot (and look into their vaccination passports whether they are current).

Though we still have measle outbreaks around Waldorf Schools (many parents are against vaccinations for “milder” diseases…)

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**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\
**Post date:** [January 17, 2018, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flu-vaccine-question/710194/22 "2018-01-17T14:09:51Z")

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> [@DSeid](#):
>
> And how well those memory T cells develop may be impacted by age at exposure with early exposure potentially resulting in T cell memory protection that may be lifelong.
> 
> So to bring this to the i[nfluenza discussion](https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2012.00357/full) at hand …
> 
> That universal “holy grail” will almost certainly be one most effective given young and aimed at a memory T cell response.

Thank you, that’s very informative.

Though - if that is the direction to go, I wonder: will in the future be the vaccination not a weakened Virus to Trigger T cell in the recipient, but rather the (isolated) part of the T cell itself? (Could that be done without immune activity by the recepient against the T cell?)

It’s similar to how there’s one disease where horses are used to produce antibodies which are then given to human patients (after filtering etc.)

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**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\
**Post date:** [January 17, 2018, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/flu-vaccine-question/710194/23 "2018-01-17T14:18:11Z")

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> [@constanze](#):
>
> Is that the reason? I’ve heard that older measles vaccine was “less good” formulae than the modern MMR, and that often the second, years-later shot was forgotten, hence the current campaign for adults to get the second (now MMR) vaccination shot (and look into their vaccination passports whether they are current).

When people were frequently exposed to measles in the “wild” a less than perfect vaccine wasn’t a problem - the initial immunity, as I said, was boosted by constant re-contact. It was only _after_ sufficient herd immunity built up that measles became rare (at least in the West) that it became a problem, requiring a better vaccine and re-vaccination of people who had only had the prior vaccine and little or no subsequent natural exposure.

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