An innovative vaccine development platform that protects cattle against infectious diseases, improves welfare and reduces livestock-produced methane

TVG, a UK-based biotech SME, is collaborating with The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) on this project. The core project team comprises Claudio Busato (project lead, APHA), Jeremy Salt (CEO, TVG) and Michael Jarvis (CSO, TVG).

Livestock production is a vital source of nutrition for the growing worldwide population. Infectious diseases in livestock hamper production, increase greenhouse gas emissions and have a detrimental effect on food production. The resources required for new vaccine development act as a disincentive for the creation of new commercial products as the process is costly and takes a long time.

However, the recognition of vaccine technology platforms is a significant step towards improving livestock disease control. To this end, TVG is developing a vaccine platform that can be adapted to help control the multiple infectious diseases that affect the cattle production industry in the UK and across the globe. Its solution will help rural cattle farmers generate enough income to maintain viable businesses without incurring the costs of diseases that invariably fall on the cattle industry.

TVG's solution will be the first to use vaccine platform technologies that do not need multiple cell lines or expensive containment facilities, enabling it to develop vaccines for use in cattle more quickly and at lower cost.