AsianScientist (May 17, 2011) – CSIRO scientists have shown that a new experimental vaccine helps to protect horses against the deadly Hendra virus.
Pathologist Dr. Deborah Middleton from CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL) announced this at the Australian Veterinary Association conference in Adelaide today.
Stopping the disease in horses could also help protect people from the disease.
“A horse vaccine is crucial to breaking the cycle of Hendra virus transmission from flying foxes to horses and then to people, as it prevents both the horse developing the disease and passing it on,” she said.
Australian Veterinary Association president Barry Smyth welcomed the news, but said it was still necessary to be wary of the disease. He advised veterinarians and horse owners to continue with precautions that reduce the risk of spreading the virus and to report suspected cases immediately.
The virus – unique to Australia – first appeared in 1994 in the Brisbane suburb of Hendra, and five of the 14 known outbreaks have spread to people. The virus causes renal failure in humans, and it has killed four of the seven people infected. The most recent human deaths were Redlands-based veterinary surgeon Ben Cuneen in 2008 and Rockhampton veterinary surgeon Alister Rodgers in 2009.
The virus is particularly dangerous as it often goes undiagnosed due to the broad range of symptoms that may or may not indicate Hendra.
Development of the vaccine took more than 10 years since the virus was isolated. Depending on further development, field trials and registration the vaccine may be available as early as 2012.
“Our bio-security facility at AAHL is the only laboratory in the world where this work could have been done. It has been slow, painstaking and high-risk work and the credit is due to many people who’ve worked on this since 1994,” Middleton said.
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Source: CSIRO.
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