Pan-Provincial Vaccine Enterprise Inc. (PREVENT) Conducting a Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Vaccine Efficacy Trial in Elk

 
Pan-Provincial Vaccine Enterprise Inc. (PREVENT) Conducting a Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Vaccine Efficacy Trial in Elk

Saskatoon, SK – May 27th, 2014 - PREVENT is utilizing the new Containment Level 3 InterVac facility located at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, University of Saskatchewan, to carry out a CWD vaccine trial. The trial will generate vaccine efficacy data in the target animal species (elk) to support regulatory approval. The CWD vaccine efficacy trial is funded in part by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture.

CWD is a progressive incurable neurodegenerative disease caused by a misfolded prion protein which is associated with all transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). Other TSEs include mad cow disease (BSE), scrapie in sheep, and Creutzfeldt Jacob disease (CJD) in humans. There are no therapeutic or prophylactic treatment options.

CWD continues to spread exponentially, and is endemic in wild (deer, elk, moose) populations in North America. Isolated cases have been found in moose and caribou. Alternative livestock producers are suffering substantial losses in domestic and export markets, and within control and eradication programs. CWD has also had a significant impact on the outfitter and game industries.

“An effective vaccine capable of reducing spread of the disease would revitalize the alternative livestock industry in western Canada. It would also reduce the potential for spread of this disease to other species, including traditional livestock and humans. Successful development of the injectable candidate for alternative livestock would encourage additional support for development of an oral vaccine candidate for wildlife applications” said Dr. Andy Potter, CEO of PREVENT.

About PREVENT

An incorporated not-for-profit organization, PREVENT is accelerating the development of promising early-stage vaccine candidates to address existing or potential human health issues. PREVENT’s founding members include: the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization – International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac), the BC Centre for Disease Control (BC-CDC), and the Canadian Center for Vaccinology (CCfV) at Dalhousie University. By partnering with Canadian experts and shouldering the risk of early-stage vaccine development, PREVENT strengthens and advances Canada’s vaccine industry, promoting growth and improved global competitiveness.

About VIDO-InterVac

Created in 1975, VIDO-InterVac is a research organization at the University of Saskatchewan with operating support from provincial and federal governments, as well as industry grants. VIDO-InterVac holds numerous patents, has developed eight commercial vaccines, and held two NSERC Research Chairs in food safety. With Biosafety Level 2 and 3 facilities and a 160 acre research station. VIDO-InterVac is well positioned to enable scientists to get one step closer to finding solutions to some of the world’s most dangerous infectious disease threats.

http://prevent-cecr.ca/Portals/PREVENT/documents/CWD%20vaccine%20trial.pdf

Research Project: Mitigating the Risk of Transmission and Environmental Contamination of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies
Location: Animal Diseases Research
Title: Diagnostic accuracy of rectal mucosa biopsy testing for chronic wasting disease within white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) herds in North America:Effects of age,sex,polymorphism at PRNP codon 96,and disease progression Authors

item Thomsen, Bruce - 
item Schneider, David 
item O'Rourke, Katherine 
item Gidlewski, Thomas - 
item Mclane, James - 
item Allen, Robert - 
item Mcisaac, Alex - 
item Mitchell, Gordon - 
item Keane, Delwyn - 
item Spraker, Terry - 
item Balachandran, Aru - 
Submitted to: J Vet Diagn Invest
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: May 26, 2012
Publication Date: September 1, 2012
Citation: Thomsen, B.V., Schneider, D.A., O'Rourke, K., Gidlewski, T., Mclane, J., Allen, R.W., Mcisaac, A.A., Mitchell, G.B., Keane, D.P., Spraker, T., Balachandran, A. 2012. Diagnostic accuracy of rectal mucosa biopsy testing for chronic wasting disease within white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) herds in North America:Effects of age,sex,polymorphism at PRNP codon 96,and disease progression. J Vet Diagn Invest. 24(5):878-87. Interpretive Summary: Control of prion diseases such as scrapie disease and chronic wasting disease (CWD) relies upon the use of accurate diagnostic testing methods. Biopsy of the rectal mucosa has proven to be an acceptable method of obtaining samples from live animals for the accurate diagnosis of scrapie in sheep and CWD in elk, and has shown promise for similar use in deer. The present study was a multi-national inter-agency effort to determine the diagnostic accuracy of testing based on samples obtained through biopsy of the rectal mucosa of deer and includes evaluation of over 600 white-tailed deer from 4 North American herds that were experiencing natural, subclinical CWD infection. Despite some limitation on sensitivity associated with early stage infection and with certain prion protein genotypes, it is concluded that selective use will provide regulatory veterinarians a useful live-animal method for investigating herds suspected of having subclinical CWD and with the potential of reducing the investigative costs based on current protocols.

Technical Abstract: An effective live animal diagnostic test is needed to assist in the control of chronic wasting disease (CWD), which has spread through captive and wild herds of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in Canada and the United States. In the present study, the diagnostic accuracy of rectal mucosa biopsy sample testing was determined in white-tailed deer from 4 CWD-infected captive herds. Specifically, the current study compared the immunohistochemical detection of disease-associated prion protein in postmortem rectal mucosa biopsy samples to the CWD status of each deer as determined by immunodiagnostic evaluations of the brainstem at the obex, the medial retropharyngeal lymph node, and the palatine tonsil. The effects of age, sex, genotype, and disease progression were also evaluated. Diagnostic sensitivity on rectal biopsy samples for CWD in white-tailed deer ranged from 63% to 100%; the pooled estimate of sensitivity was 68% with 95% confidence limits (95% CLs) of 49% and 82%. However, diagnostic sensitivity was dependent on genotype at prion protein gene (PRNP) codon 96 and on disease progression as assessed by obex grade. Diagnostic sensitivity was 76% (95% CLs: 49%, 91%) for 96GG deer but only 42% (95% CLs: 13%, 79%) for 96GS deer. Furthermore, diagnostic sensitivity was only 36% for deer in the earliest stage of disease (obex grade 0) but was 100% for deer in the last 2 stages of preclinical disease (obex grades 3 and 4). The overall diagnostic specificity was 99.8%. Selective use of antemortem rectal biopsy sample testing would provide valuable information during disease investigations of CWD-suspect deer herds.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?seq_no_115=279337



Sunday, August 11, 2013

Development of an oral vaccine for chronic wasting disease

AD.24: Development of an oral vaccine for chronic wasting disease

Ryan Taschuk1,3 Kristen Marciniuk,1,2 Suresh Tikoo,1,3 Philip Griebel,1 Andrew Potter,1 Neil Cashman5 and Scott Napper1,2

1University of Saskatchewan; VIDO-lnterVac; Saskatoon, SK Canada; 2Department of Biochemistry; University of Saskatchewan; Saskatoon, SK Canada; 3School of Public Health; University of Saskatchewan; Saskatoon, SK Canada; 4Brain Research Centre; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada; 5Brain Research Center; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada

The prion protein is well conserved across mammals, and the misfolded protein is the causative agent in many animal-specific prion diseases, including chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer and elk. Prion diseases are caused by misfolding of endogenously expressed prion protein from the native and homeostatic Prpc conformation to the infectious and pathogenic PrPsc conformation. Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies are of great interest for many reasons: the onset of disease inevitably leads to neurodegeneration and death, the potential of interference with food production through transmission both within and between agricultural species can have severe economic impacts, and the potential exists for zoonotic transmission. Our group has hypothesized that immunotherapeutic targeting of the PrPSc conformation would clear the infectious agent / infected cell while sparing native PrP, and vaccines may have potential application in prevention of CWD transmission or therapeutic treatment of disease.

Our research has focused upon identifying and optimizing three components of a potential CWD vaccine: a CWD-disease specific epitope (DSE) that induces antibody responses, a carrier protein to increase the magnitude and duration of antibody responses toward DSEs, and identification of delivery systems for oral delivery of the above DSE-carrier protein ro cervids. We have developed and optimized DSEs from three distinct regions of PrPc. Vaccination trials using iterations of these DSEs elicit high titers of epitope-specific serum antibody. A second generation carrier protein has increased both the duration and magnitude of antibody responses when compared with our previous carrier protein. Lastly, two delivery systems were effective in inducing antibody responses when administered orally to white-tailed deer. We have identified the vaccine components necessary for delivering a CWD vaccine to wild cervids. These findings will direct our final CWD vaccine formulation and delivery system.

http://www.prion2013.ca/tiny_uploads/forms/Scientific-Program.pdf

http://www.neuroprion.org/resources/pdf_docs/conferences/prion2009/brochure-tse_workshop.pdf

http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2012/02/newly-developed-injectable-cwd-vaccine.html

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

CWD Herd Certification Program and Interstate Movement of Farmed or Captive Deer, Elk, and Moose FR Doc No: 2014-09714 April 29, 2014 UPDATE

http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2014/04/cwd-herd-certification-program-and.html


Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Texas 84th Legislature 2015 H.R. No. 2597 Kuempel Deer Breeding Industry TAHC TPWD CWD TSE PRION

http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/2014/12/texas-84th-legislature-2015-hr-no-2597.html


http://chronic-wasting-disease.blogspot.com/


TSS