WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are teaming with Purdue University scientists to tame bird flu.

Student scientists and CDC researchers have been working for seven years on a vaccine that protects humans.

They've tested it in mice and found that it can neutralize two strains of the disease. Next, they plan to test it on mutated forms of the virus, said Suresh Mittal, a Purdue University professor and one of the project's researchers.

"The concern is that since the virus is spreading, it is mutating, and if the virus can begin to spread (from person to person) it may cause an influenza pandemic," Mittal said.

Avian influenza is an infection caused by influenza viruses that naturally occurs among birds. Its symptoms in humans can range from a fever, sore throat and cough to eye infections, pneumonia or severe respiratory diseases.

Overall, 381 human cases of avian influenza have been confirmed in 14 countries, mostly in Asia, with some in Africa and Turkey. Of those, 240 resulted in death.

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Information from: Journal and Courier, http://www.jconline.com