Polio vaccine attenuated vaccine strains. In 1958, the National Institutes of Health created a special committee on live polio vaccines. The various vaccines were carefully evaluated for their ability to induce immunity to polio, while retaining a low incidence of neuropathogenicity in monkeys. Large-scale clinical trials performed in the Soviet Union in late 1950s to early 1960s by Mikhail Chumakov and his colleagues demonstrated safety and high efficacy of the vaccine. Based on these results, the Sabin strains were chosen for worldwide distribution. Fifty-seven nucleotide substitutions distinguish the attenuated Sabin 1 strain from its virulent parent (the Mahoney serotype), two nucleotide substitutions
John B. Robbins John B. Robbins John Bennett Robbins (born December 1, 1932) is a senior investigator at the National Institutes of Health, best known for his development of the vaccine against bacterial meningitis (Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib)) with his colleague Rachel Schneerson. Bacterial meningitis is the leading cause of acquired mental retardation in children. Robbins is a recipient of the 1996 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research, the Pasteur Award from the World Health Organization and the Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal in 2001 which he received for playing a major role in the development of Hib conjugate vaccine that