By Bruce Cochrane
A new vaccine developed by VIDO-InterVac is proving to be highly effective in protecting neonatal piglets from PEDv.
Over the past approximately 12 months scientists with VIDO-InterVac have developed a new vaccine designed to protect neonatal piglets from the virus responsible for Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea.
The vaccine is administered to the sow at four weeks and again at two weeks prior to farrowing to provide maternal immunization.
Dr. Volker Gerdts, the associate director research with VIDO-InterVac, says pre-clinical tests have shown vaccinated sows are transferring immunity to their litters protecting the newborn piglets from the virus.
Dr. Volker Gerdts-VIDO-InterVac:
We're seeing very promising results indeed.
The vaccine seems to be highly effective in our tests.
We've now done this in about eight clinical trials involving hundreds of animals and we've shown that the vaccine is highly effective.
The next thing we have to show now is that the vaccine is safe to use.
Safety in this case is very, very important as you can imagine because you want to show that there is no live virus in our vaccine, so we have to demonstrate to CFIA, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, that our vaccine is completely inactivated, that there is no live virus in it and we've done that, and then you also have to show that it's safe to use, so there's no other adverse reactions to the vaccine.
From then on the next thing is to show efficacy in commercial units and so we have asked Sask Pork to work with us together on testing the vaccine in the field.
Dr. Gerdts hopes to start clinical trials on commercial units this summer, with the first results expected by late fall and then, depending on regulatory approval, to move to the next stage and make the vaccine available.
He notes VIDO-InterVac has already produced thousands of doses and hopes to make those available within the not too distant future.
Source: Farmscape