Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research provides a grant of $145,000 to Genvax Technologies to develop vaccine.
By Andrew Joseph, Farms.com; Image via GettyImages.
The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) is providing a grant of US$145,000 to Genvax Technologies to develop a self-amplifying messenger RNA (saRNA) vaccine for African Swine Fever (ASF) in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Services-Plum Island Animal Disease Center (USDA-ARS-PIADC).
Genvax Technologies also chipped in matching funds for a total US$290,000 investment in innovative ASF vaccine research.
ASF is a highly contagious virus that causes 100 percent mortality in swine—currently there is no cure and no vaccine to prevent its onset.
The virus has been rampant in many European and Asian countries over the past four years, and while it has hit some of the Caribbean islands, no occurrence of ASF has ever occurred in either the US or Canada, which both countries aiming to keep it that way.
Outbreaks of ASF has caused economic harm to the swine industry in the past, and preventing its occurrence in North America will prevent a major impact on pork availability for consumers.
Economic models estimate the worst-case scenario of an American ASF outbreak would result in a $50 billion loss to US pig producers and allied industry. Because the US also exports 20 percent of its annual pork production, an outbreak could affect the availability of pork on the world market, reducing access to animal protein and impacting global food security.
"We have already seen the effects of this highly contagious, deadly virus in countries across the world. If ASF reaches the US, we need to be prepared with an effective vaccine that can protect the US swine industry. We have learned from the Covid pandemic that RNA vaccines can be produced rapidly and adapted for different variants; now it’s time to apply those learnings to improve animal health," said Tim Kurt DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) the Scientific Program Director for FFAR’s Advanced Animal Systems Challenge Area.
Genvax Technologies is already in the midst of developing a non-living vaccine composed of self-amplifying messenger RNA, or saRNA. The saRNA vaccines are genetically engineered molecules that trigger the immune system to make antibodies that can successfully attack and destroy an invading virus.
Researchers will test the vaccine at USDA-ARS’s Plum Island Animal Disease Center to determine if it can protect swine when exposed to a virulent, or severe strain of the virus. If successful, Gevnax Technologies will seek approval from USDA-Center for Veterinary Biologics to deploy the vaccine should an outbreak occur.
This research ensures there will be infrastructure and capacity in place to rapidly respond to an ASF outbreak with next generation saRNA vaccine technology. Additionally, the saRNA technology will be adaptable to variants of the ASF virus occurring in new outbreaks of the disease.
“The threat posed by African Swine Fever is extraordinary to both producers and consumers,” said Joel Harris, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Genvax Technologies. “The creation, testing and regulatory approval of the vaccine will be a real joint effort by the USDA’s Plum Island Animal Disease Center, the Center for Veterinary Biologics and Genvax. The goal is to get a vaccine in the field that matches 100 percent to the specific ASF strain if an outbreak were to occur. This vaccine will also be compatible with diagnostic tests that can differentiate infected from vaccinated animals (DIVA). This makes our vaccine an important tool for eradication efforts and may alleviate any concerns with trading partners abroad.”
FFAR awarded this grant through the Rapid Outcomes from Agricultural Research (ROAR) program, which deploys urgent funding to support research and outreach in response to emerging or unanticipated threats to the nation’s food supply or agricultural systems.
FFAR builds public-private partnerships to fund bold research addressing big food and agriculture challenges. FFAR was established in the US 2014 Farm Bill to increase public agriculture research investments, fill knowledge gaps and complement USDA’s research agenda. FFAR’s model matches federal funding from US Congress with private funding, delivering a powerful return on taxpayer investment. Through collaboration and partnerships, FFAR advances actionable science benefiting farmers, consumers, and the environment.
More information on Genvax Technologies may be found at https://www.genvax.com/.