Scientists at the University of Glasgow, in collaboration with Merial Animal Health have developed a new and cost-effective method of producing a reliable type of inactivated Bluetongue virus (BTV) vaccine using a "synthetic biology" approach.
This method doesn't rely on the use of live, infectious virus and could mean that it is safer than other types of vaccine.
BTV is spread to cattle and sheep by a type of midge. Infected animals experience a range of symptoms, which are fatal in some cases. Previous prevention measures have included culling of animals along with the use of inactivated vaccines that contain viruses that have been killed by chemical methods.
However such vaccines only offer protection against a specific strain of the virus. There are at least 26 distinct different strains of BTV, meaning that often when a new strain of BTV emerges, a new vaccine is required.
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