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An experimental vaccine against H5N1 bird flu only appears to work at the very highest doses, meaning it will be harder than feared to protect the population against a pandemic, researchers said on Wednesday. The vaccine, made by a unit of Sanofi-Aventis only produced a satisfactory immune response in volunteers at two doses of 90 micrograms each. That is 12 times what is needed for the annual seasonal flu shot. "It is a bit of muted good news in that we are going in the right direction, but the sobering news is we have a long way to go," National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci said in a telephone briefing, as he thought to himself, 'Whew, I'm glad I brought home double dosages for all of my people.' These findings mean there is only enough H5N1 vaccine now in the US stockpile to protect about 4 million Americans in a pandemic. Global capacity for making influenza vaccines is 900 million doses. The United States would need vaccine to protect 300 million people, but the most ever made for the US market is 83 million doses.