Past activities and Achievements

Previous ASF projects within GALVmed have focussed on the assessment of a naturally attenuated field strain of ASFV as a vaccine candidate, and the capacity of an engineered cell line (ZMAC™) to act as a commercial production system for a future whole virus-based vaccine.

Legacy projects on ASF vaccine development have assessed targeted genetic mutation of genotype I, II and IX strains to develop attenuated live vaccines.

All the ASF projects have concluded, and although generating interesting research data no clear viable product has been developed.

Past activities and Achievements

The only immunological intervention that protects cattle against ECF is the ECF-ITM (Infection and treatment method) vaccine (an example is the Muguga Cocktail), which is relatively complicated to manufacture and administer, yet highly effective. ECF-ITM involves injecting a preparation of live Theileria parva parasite sporozoites concurrently with a long-acting antibiotic. GALVmed supported work to improve the production process of this vaccine and the transfer of the technology from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi, where it was originally produced, to larger-scale production at the African Union Centre for Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases (CTTBD) in Malawi.

Past activities and Achievements

A new vaccine, based on technology from the University of Melbourne, became the first licensed cysticercosis vaccine for pigs. It was launched in India by our manufacturing and distributing partner Indian Immunologicals (IIL) Ltd in 2016. Another partner based in Morocco, MCI Santé Animale, developed a therapeutic drug, oxfendazole, to eliminate parasite larvae.

Past activities and Achievements

Historically, GALVmed has not had a funded project on small ruminant reproductive pathogens.

Several bacterial pathogens cause abortion or reduce fertility in ruminants, and some may also infect humans (zoonotic diseases). The small ruminant reproductive multivalent vaccine aimed to provide an innovative approach to countering the significant reproductive losses due to infectious agents in the small-scale livestock keeper setting. The growing importance of small ruminants (including small-scale dairy goat systems) in small-scale agriculture points towards this vaccine being a valued farming input.

GALVmed worked with a commercial vaccine manufacturer to develop a reproductive vaccine addressing several major small ruminant diseases (Q Fever, C abortus, PPR, B melitensis) by concurrently administering several monovalent vaccines.  The syndromic approach recognised the marked absence of differential diagnosis in many LMICs settings.