New centre to help fight infectious diseases
May, 2010
For the past 35 years, the University of Saskatchewan's Vaccine and Infection Disease Organization, better known as VIDO, has been a world leader in vaccine research for a wide range of diseases, most recently against E. coli 0157 which causes no apparent disease in cattle, but can cause severe and even fatal illness in humans.
Now VIDO's renowned expertise in understanding how microbes cause disease (termed pathogenesis) and developing vaccines and vaccination technologies is about to expand, greatly enhancing Canada's capacity to protect animal health and save lives.
In spring 2011, VIDO will open the International Vaccine Centre or InterVac, a $140-million Containment Level 3 (CL3) facility for studying diseases affecting both animals and humans. The term "CL3" defines the level of safety measures and equipment needed within a facility to ensure workers are safe when studying certain diseases including bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and Anthrax.
InterVac will be Canada's largest capital investment to date in vaccine research and development and one of the largest, most advanced facilities of its kind in the world, able to determine vaccine effectiveness in up to 160 cattle at one time.
Infectious diseases can take an enormous toll, not just on cattle herds, but also on the livestock industry as a whole.
"The detection of the first Canadian-born case of BSE in May 2003 caused the United States and more than 30 other countries to shut their borders to Canadian beef," says Dr. Andrew Potter, VIDO-InterVac's Director. "This cost the Canadian cattle industry billions of dollars."
Now with climate change and globalization, infectious diseases can spread swiftly. Nearly 80 per cent of emerging infectious diseases affect both animals and humans, posing threats to the health of both Canadians and the livestock industry. Pathogens transmitted from animals to humans via contaminated food and water cause up to 33 million cases of reported illness each year in North America.
"We know how the Listeria monocytogenes outbreak affected Canada's food system. And we're all too aware of the CL3 diseases that have the potential to impact the economics of the global cattle industry such as bovine tuberculosis, the viral disease bluetongue, and anaplasmosis" said Potter.
"We need to find solutions to deal with emerging diseases before they have debilitating effects on our livestock industry. And more importantly, we have to be prepared for the next infectious disease that emerges. InterVac will help us do that."
VIDO-InterVac collaborates extensively with external institutes and companies to boost the health of livestock and the value of agricultural products.
For instance, VIDO partnered with the University of British Columbia and Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. in developing a vaccine for cattle against E. coli O157:H7, a world first. The vaccine has the potential to significantly reduce the amount of E. coli O157 shed into the environment by beef and dairy cattle, thereby keeping the disease to a minimum. An estimated 100,000 cases of human infection with the E. coli O157:H7 are reported each year in North America.
VIDO-InterVac works with cattle producers to solve problems affecting their herds, whether the problem is Containment Level 2 diseases such as Johne's disease and bovine mastitis, or CL3 diseases including bovine tuberculosis and BSE. The new facility will be open to researchers from across Canada and around the globe to find solutions to agriculturally important infectious diseases.
Paramount in Potter's mind is the pace at which vaccine research and development will be done at InterVac.
"Our number one goal is to develop, test and get vaccines and diagnostic tests to the user much sooner than ever before," says Potter. "For the livestock industry, it means that research and development on infectious diseases of agricultural and economic significance will be strengthened and strategies that address animal health issues will be enhanced."
VIDO is credited with six "world firsts" in animal vaccines, including the world's first genetically engineered vaccine to combat shipping fever in cattle and the first vaccine against calf scours. VIDO-InterVac is poised to undertake ground-breaking research that will define the next generation of innovative products for both animal and human health.
For more information, visit: www.vido.org
VIDO was created in 1975 to develop vaccines against economically devastating diseases of livestock and to ensure the technology reached livestock producers.
From a staff of five temporarily housed in trailers, VIDO has grown to approximately 150 people in 100,000 square feet of laboratory and administrative space.
With the addition of InterVac, the organization will now have the capability to conduct research on Containment Level 3 agents, and to develop and test vaccines to combat them. InterVac will be one of the most advanced facilities in North America capable of testing vaccines on large animals. |
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