Associated Press Article:
http://www.kotv.com/main/home/stories.asp?whichpage=1&id=75984
Print Text & Photos Updated: 1/14/2005 12:41:27 PM

OSU-Tulsa Selected To Hold Trials For New Measles Vaccine

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) -- Clinical trials of a new measles vaccine will be conducted at Oklahoma State University's Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa. Doctor Stanley Grogg says the trials are the third phase of a four- phase national study to find a new measles vaccine. Grogg says he hopes to have 30 children between the ages of 1-year and 18-months for the study.

He says the pharmaceutical company that makes the vaccine used a 1967  measles virus to make the original vaccine and that vaccine will be used up in two to three years, so a new vaccination must be found. The fourth phase of the study will involve about ten-thousand people  nationwide and must be completed before the vaccine can be submitted to the Food and Drug Administration for approval.  Grogg says use of a new measles vaccine is still a few years away.  Source: Associated Press 

Here are some very  keen observations from members of the vaccinescience group on the subject:

I hope someone here can answer some questions I have:

1) I thought that once a virus had been isolated for use in vaccine production, it could be used indefinitely so long as a cell culture is available to amplify or propagate more vaccine virus.  Is this
true?

2) If the above is true then what is the story behind this researcher saying the current vaccine will be used up in 2-3 yrs?  Is that going to be the "party line" used when a better vaccine is suddenly available?  "We ran out of old vaccine so here is the newer version?" Are researchers trying to find a replacement measles vaccine because the current vaccine is flawed in some way?  I have read the studies showing that measles vaccine sometimes produces chronic measles infections in some vaccinees and the evidence is confirmed with DNA testing that shows vaccine-strain measles virus is persisting years post vaccination?

I'm confused about this researcher's comments and hope someone here can help shed some light.
Not as detailed a response as you deserve but others may know more...but IMHO It most likely means that someone's patent is about to run out..look for the combo MMR/Varicella...eeep!