Moredun Scientific, in collaboration with Swedish animal health company Intervacc AB, have successfully completed a four-year Eurostars funded research project on the development of a vaccine against Streptococcus suis infections in pigs.
In 2018, Moredun Scientific and Intervacc AB were granted funding to develop vaccine candidates to protect piglets against S. suis infections, under the Eurostars-2 program, part of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program.
Streptococcus suis can cause severe infections in pig herds with severe economic impact on the pig industry, the pathogen can also affect humans. Conventional vaccines currently in use have shown limited effectiveness, failing to protect pig herds against all strains of the pathogen. The project, “Vaccine Against Streptococcus suis Infections in Pigs”, aimed to create a transformative shift within the realm of pig vaccination.
The primary objective of this collaboration was to develop and validate disease challenge models employing key S. suis serotypes in piglets, thereby facilitating the evaluation of vaccine efficacy. Across the four-year timeline, the project accomplished three vaccine efficacy studies which conclusively demonstrated that vaccination of pregnant sows effectively protects piglets from S. suis infections. The research yielded valuable data concerning vaccine dosage and adjuvants for enhancing the immune response. Moreover, novel immunological reagents were developed to enable the analysis of porcine immune reactions and fostering an improved understanding of immune functionality.
As a result of the project, Moredun Scientific successfully developed disease challenge models applicable for further S. suis studies. In addition, Intervacc AB completed patent filings related to the vaccine candidates.
Dr Andrew Waller, Chief Scientific Officer at Intervacc AB said:
“We are very pleased with the outcomes of the Eurostars funded project which enabled us to progress the development of our novel S. suis vaccine and generate proof-of-concept protective efficacy data in pigs.”
David Reddick, Head of Animal Health at Moredun Scientific commented:
“Our collaboration with Intervacc has been very successful, the project supported the development of our porcine disease model portfolio and immunological tools to increase our understanding of the porcine immune response to vaccination.”
ENDS
Moredun Scientific is a contract research organisation based in Scotland. The Company is focussed on supporting animal health, aquaculture and biopharmaceutical companies by testing their products and providing data to support development decisions, registration and commercialisation. The organisation has over 30 years of experience working with the global animal health industry and has a wide range of livestock infectious disease models for use in efficacy studies. www.moredun-scientific.com.
Intervacc AB is a Swedish company within animal health developing vaccines for animals. The Company’s vaccine and vaccine candidates are based on several years of research at Karolinska Institutet and Swedish University of Agricultural Research where the foundation was laid for the Company´s research and development work. The Intervacc share has been listed on the Nasdaq First North Growth Market since April 2017. www.intervacc.se.
Eurostars is a European innovation programme, part of the European Partnership on Innovative Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The program provides financial support for projects through national funding from each participating nation. Employing a grassroots approach, the funding empowers SMEs to engage in market-oriented research, collaborate with compatible partners, and grow their organisation. The goal of the program is to support international R&D projects with ground-breaking products, processes, and services that can be commercialised rapidly. www.eurekanetwork.org/countries/spain/eurostars/.