Improved control of priority animal diseases: Novel vaccines and companion diagnostic tests for African horse sickness, peste des petits ruminants and foot-and-mouth disease

Current vaccines for African horse sickness (AHS), peste des petits ruminants (PPR) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) have critical shortcomings that leave the European Union vulnerable to these category A transboundary animal diseases, but control strategies that rely on culling alone are increasingly rejected by the public.

At the same time, the risk of an introduction of AHS, PPR or FMD into Europe is growing, driven by climate change, global trade and long-distance travel.

Innovative vaccines and companion diagnostics that are grounded in an increased knowledge of pathogenesis and immunity are urgently required to improve the capacity to prevent introductions and contain outbreaks, which are a major threat to European agriculture.

The SPIDVAC (Safe Priority Infectious Diseases VACcines) consortium consists of 13 partners from Germany, France, Spain, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, South Africa and Senegal, who will develop innovative vaccines against AHS, PPR and FMD and evaluate their capabilities in vitro, demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the candidate vaccines in small-animal models and in the target species and develop companion diagnostic to reliably differentiate between infected and vaccinated animals (DIVA).

In addition, the project will increase knowledge on the mechanisms of infection, virulence and immunity and study the acceptability of vaccines for stakeholders in endemic areas.

The consortium includes industry partners for veterinary vaccines and diagnostic tools, who will ensure the technological readiness and market relevance of the newly developed tools, which will help policy makers, veterinary services and business operators reduce the burden of infectious animal diseases, contribute to a sustainable livestock industry and promote public and animal health from farm to fork.