New product/treatment opportunities

Oral anti-rabies vaccine from the air

Rabies is a viral disease, commonly transmitted by biting or, in certain situations, by aerial infection. Its major reservoir is found in wild animals such as foxes, skunks, raccoons, stray dogs, wolves and mongooses. Annually, 50,000 humans and millions of animals die of the disease, predominantly in Asia. To eradicate rabies on a large scale, an efficient oral vaccine which can be put inside a bait and spontaneously consumed by wild animals is needed. The company Merial constructed a recombinant vaccinia virus expressing the rabies virus glycoprotein G. This recombinant virus is then multiplied using animal cell cultures because of the necessity to maintain the correct glycoprotein pattern. The live virus is formulated into a vaccine which, so far, has been tested in over 50 domestic and wild animals. Bait containing a sachet of the vaccine is distributed easily by air, bringing the total eradication of rabies now a step closer.