New FMD vaccine developed in USA
Researchers in the US Department of Homeland Security's Plum Island Animal Disease Center have developed a new vaccine for Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD). It is hoped that the new vaccine will offer longer-lasting immunity to the disease than is provided by the existing vaccine and will prove safer to manufacture, leading to a reduction in the expenditure and inconvenience involved in both the manufacturing process and the current need to vaccinate 3-4 times per year.
Also of note is the inclusion of an antibody test which will allow veterinary surgeons to determined vaccinated animals from infected animals, because present testing for FMD erroneously returns a positive result for both. The ability to achieve more accurate results will likely have beneficial effects upon trade, as a better understanding of the state of the spread of the disease will likely allow greater confidence amongst importers.
Commenting, Research Leader of the Centre's Foreign Animal Disease Research Unit Dr Luis Rodriquez said “It's a very good innovation - the most effective way to date and very promising technology. I think it's going to revolutionise the way we look at FMD vaccines around the world today.”
With Strangles Awareness Week just around the corner (5-11 May), vets are being encouraged to share a survey about the disease with their horse-owning clients.
