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EmailIphone Application    Posted: 25th April 2013
Research offers hope for bTB vaccine
Nottingham-China collaboration could lead to vaccine

 New research from the University of Nottingham and the China Agricultural University could be a significant step towards developing a vaccine against both bovine and human TB.

The latest Defra figures show the slaughter of cattle as a result of bovine TB (bTB), increased by 10 per cent in the UK, with over 38,000 animals being slaughtered in 2012.

The disease is a major economic problem in China. Within any herd, up to 70 per cent of cattle can be affected. A zoonotic disease, bTB can also transmit to humans, and effective treatment can take up to two years. This is not a financially viable option for impoverished people living in remote locations in China.

The universities are collaborating on a two-year research project to investigate whether the presence of one bacterium could offer protection against bTB.

"We have discovered very interesting and novel interactions between different bacterial types during mixed infections," says lead researcher, Professor Paul Barrow, of the University of Nottingham. "One bacterial type can stimulate short term immunity against unrelated bacteria providing a degree of protection."

Researchers from the university will use advanced microarray technology to test cattle samples from both the UK and China, in order to detect the mixture of bacteria present in a single animal.

Scientists in China will also conduct vitro assays in cell culture to determine the effect one bacterium has on the immune system's response to another.

The project has received a £200,000 grant from the Research Council UK, Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) and the China-UK Cooperation Programme in Global Priorities.

It is hoped that the research findings will lead to the development of an emergency vaccine, that could be used in the event of infection being found within a herd. The vaccine would stimulate rapid resistance to bTB, thereby preventing its spread.

This could also apply to the treatment of human TB, allowing family members to be vaccinated shortly after the diagnosis of a relative.

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Applications open for MMI research grants

News Story 1
 RCVS' Mind Matters Initiative (MMI) has launched round two of its veterinary mental health research grants.

Researchers have until 11.59pm on Wednesday, 28 May 2025 to apply for a grant for research which reflects MMI's 2025 focus areas.

Only one Impact Grant was awarded last year, and so this year there are two Discovery Grants and one Impact Grants available. Each Discovery Grant is worth £5,000 and the Impact Grant is worth £15,000.

For more information or to apply, email researchgrants@rcvs.org.uk to contact the MMI team.

 

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News Shorts
Germany livestock import ban lifted

The UK government has amended its ban on the import of livestock, meat and dairy products from Germany.

Defra said the decision follows 'rigorous technical assessment' of the measures applied and the current situation. "If the situation changes, we will not hesitate to take necessary action in response to the FMD outbreaks in the European Union to protect our domestic biosecurity," it said.

The ban was implemented in January following an outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD) near Berlin. Personal imports of meat, milk and dairy products will remain in place at a country level.