Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SPIDVAC (Improved control of priority animal diseases: Novel vaccines and companion diagnostic tests for African horse sickness, peste des petits ruminants and foot-and-mouth disease)
Reporting period: 2022-07-01 to 2023-12-31
African horse sickness (AHS), peste des petits ruminants (PPR) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) are three priority animal diseases included in the list of notifiable animal diseases of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
AHS is a devastating disease of equids caused by an arbovirus transmitted by haematophagous Culicoides midges. The virus is endemic to tropical and subtropical areas of Africa but it has repeatedly spread to Europe and Asia as well, causing severe outbreaks. The infection of horses with AHSV leads to acute disease characterized by severe respiratory and circulatory impairment and is often fatal.
PPR is extremely contagious and has a case fatality rate of up to 90%. The disease is endemic to most of Africa, the Near East and Asia, now extending as far as China. This rapid expansion is threatening more than 80% of the total sheep and goat population in the world. The causative agent is the PPR virus (PPRV), a virus that is related to rinderpest, canine distemper and measles viruses. Following the lead of the successful rinderpest eradication campaign, the global eradication of PPR is targeted for 2030.
FMD is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other cloven-hoofed animals. Three quarters of the global livestock population live in areas affected by FMD, primarily in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Recent outbreaks in Bulgaria and Israel illustrated the relevance of wild boar in FMD epidemiology and this will get worse as the populations of wild boar and feral pigs are expanding in the EU and around the globe.
Current vaccines for AHS, PPR and FMD have critical shortcomings that leave the European Union vulnerable to these category A transboundary animal diseases. Control strategies that rely on culling alone are increasingly rejected by the public. At the same time, the risk of an introduction of AHS, PPR or FMD into Europe is growing, driven by climate change, global trade and long-distance travel. Innovative vaccines and companion diagnostics grounded in increased knowledge of pathogenesis and immunity are urgently required to improve the capacity to prevent introductions from endemic countries outside the EU and contain outbreaks, which are a major threat to European agriculture. The SPIDVAC (Safe Priority Infectious Diseases VACcines) consortium will develop innovative vaccines against AHS, PPR and FMD and evaluate their capabilities in vitro, demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the candidate vaccines in small-animal models and in the target species and develop companion diagnostic to reliably differentiate between infected and vaccinated animals (DIVA). In addition, the project will increase knowledge on the mechanisms of infection, virulence and immunity and study the acceptability of vaccines for stakeholders in endemic areas. The consortium includes industry partners for veterinary vaccines and diagnostic tools, who will ensure the technological readiness and market relevance of the newly developed tools, which will help policy makers, veterinary services and business operators reduce the burden of infectious animal diseases, contribute to a sustainable livestock industry and promote public and animal health from farm to fork.
AHS is a devastating disease of equids caused by an arbovirus transmitted by haematophagous Culicoides midges. The virus is endemic to tropical and subtropical areas of Africa but it has repeatedly spread to Europe and Asia as well, causing severe outbreaks. The infection of horses with AHSV leads to acute disease characterized by severe respiratory and circulatory impairment and is often fatal.
PPR is extremely contagious and has a case fatality rate of up to 90%. The disease is endemic to most of Africa, the Near East and Asia, now extending as far as China. This rapid expansion is threatening more than 80% of the total sheep and goat population in the world. The causative agent is the PPR virus (PPRV), a virus that is related to rinderpest, canine distemper and measles viruses. Following the lead of the successful rinderpest eradication campaign, the global eradication of PPR is targeted for 2030.
FMD is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other cloven-hoofed animals. Three quarters of the global livestock population live in areas affected by FMD, primarily in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Recent outbreaks in Bulgaria and Israel illustrated the relevance of wild boar in FMD epidemiology and this will get worse as the populations of wild boar and feral pigs are expanding in the EU and around the globe.
Current vaccines for AHS, PPR and FMD have critical shortcomings that leave the European Union vulnerable to these category A transboundary animal diseases. Control strategies that rely on culling alone are increasingly rejected by the public. At the same time, the risk of an introduction of AHS, PPR or FMD into Europe is growing, driven by climate change, global trade and long-distance travel. Innovative vaccines and companion diagnostics grounded in increased knowledge of pathogenesis and immunity are urgently required to improve the capacity to prevent introductions from endemic countries outside the EU and contain outbreaks, which are a major threat to European agriculture. The SPIDVAC (Safe Priority Infectious Diseases VACcines) consortium will develop innovative vaccines against AHS, PPR and FMD and evaluate their capabilities in vitro, demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the candidate vaccines in small-animal models and in the target species and develop companion diagnostic to reliably differentiate between infected and vaccinated animals (DIVA). In addition, the project will increase knowledge on the mechanisms of infection, virulence and immunity and study the acceptability of vaccines for stakeholders in endemic areas. The consortium includes industry partners for veterinary vaccines and diagnostic tools, who will ensure the technological readiness and market relevance of the newly developed tools, which will help policy makers, veterinary services and business operators reduce the burden of infectious animal diseases, contribute to a sustainable livestock industry and promote public and animal health from farm to fork.
In the first project period, significant progress was made in the development of the new vaccines against the three priority animal diseases included in the list of notifiable diseases of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). The development of two different AHS vaccine prototypes was completed and they were successfully tested in the laboratory and in a small-animal model. It was also shown for both prototypes that a reliable differentiation between infected and vaccinated animals (DIVA) will be possible.
For the development of the new PPR vaccines, realizing their DIVA capability turned out to be more difficult than anticipated, but the cause of the problem was identified and a solution is being worked on. The methodology for the socio-economic study on the acceptance of a PPR DIVA vaccine in Senegal was refined and a timetable for its implementation was agreed with the local partners.
A copy of the FMD virus that will be the basis of the new vaccine was successfully created in the laboratory. In experiments with this virus model, it was discovered that the original approach to produce an attenuated vaccine will not be feasible. But since this was already identified as a possible risk in the project planning, mitigation strategies have been prepared and the progress of the project will not be affected. The first prototypes of attenuated FMD vaccines are now under construction.
For the development of the new PPR vaccines, realizing their DIVA capability turned out to be more difficult than anticipated, but the cause of the problem was identified and a solution is being worked on. The methodology for the socio-economic study on the acceptance of a PPR DIVA vaccine in Senegal was refined and a timetable for its implementation was agreed with the local partners.
A copy of the FMD virus that will be the basis of the new vaccine was successfully created in the laboratory. In experiments with this virus model, it was discovered that the original approach to produce an attenuated vaccine will not be feasible. But since this was already identified as a possible risk in the project planning, mitigation strategies have been prepared and the progress of the project will not be affected. The first prototypes of attenuated FMD vaccines are now under construction.
The AHS vaccines, which were successfully tested in mice, need to be further characterized in equids. These experiments are now in the planning stage. Once they have been completed successfully, further steps towards large-scale production and commercialization of the prototypes will be taken.
For PPR, new ways of producing a DIVA vaccine are being explored. The new vaccines must then be proven in the laboratory and in the target species, the goat. If these tests are successful, the new vaccine can make an important contribution to the global eradication of PPR, which is targeted for 2030.
Within SPIDVAC, the FMDV vaccines will be tested for their suitability as an orally administered vaccine for pigs. By administering the vaccine orally, it could be used not only in domestic pigs but also in wildlife susceptible to FMDV. However, this will require further studies beyond this project in order to confirm the safety of the vaccine for field use.
For PPR, new ways of producing a DIVA vaccine are being explored. The new vaccines must then be proven in the laboratory and in the target species, the goat. If these tests are successful, the new vaccine can make an important contribution to the global eradication of PPR, which is targeted for 2030.
Within SPIDVAC, the FMDV vaccines will be tested for their suitability as an orally administered vaccine for pigs. By administering the vaccine orally, it could be used not only in domestic pigs but also in wildlife susceptible to FMDV. However, this will require further studies beyond this project in order to confirm the safety of the vaccine for field use.