What will 2019 bring for science and medicine? We asked the experts

It has been a tumultuous year for science and medicine, and also for the business and politics of both. And with CRISPR babies still in the headlines, Donald Trump still in the White House, and the Dow down again, 2019 is shaping up to be just as turbulent. We asked a whole host of experts — scientists, CEOs, policymakers, and professors — to weigh in on what themes they expect to see emerge in the next 12 months.

We’re getting closer to a universal flu vaccine

I think we’ll see substantial progress in the quest for improved influenza vaccines that get us closer to the goal of a broadly protective, durable “universal vaccine.” We will not have a true universal influenza vaccine by any stretch of the imagination in 2019. However, we will likely see positive results from clinical trials underway, including serological data from Phase 1 studies that will give us a sense of how well vaccines aimed at “broader coverage” will work. We’ll also see strong preclinical data from