May 13, 2025
Clinical trials begin for ASF vaccine candidate
A vaccine candidate for African swine fever (ASF) is undergoing tests at The Pirbright Institute in United Kingdom (UK).
Developed in partnership between the institute and The Vaccine Group (TVG)—a UK-based animal vaccine company—the inoculation is being clinically trialled in vaccinated pigs.
"Vaccinated pigs will be challenged using a virulent ASF virus strain in a model developed recently at Pirbright to mimic natural routes of infection, offering exciting potential for vaccine development," said Chris Netherton, who leads the ASF vaccinology group at Pirbright. "The outcome of the study will be published as soon as possible."
For the past 15 years, ASF has developed into an epidemic affecting pig producers globally, and is present in large parts of Eastern, Central and Southern Europe. ASF was introduced into China in 2018, and in 2021 was reported in the Dominican Republic and later in Haiti.
"This massive geographical expansion makes ASF a truly global issue, and the risk of further dissemination into disease-free areas is considered high," said Netherton.
TVG has collaborated with world experts at Pirbright for over six years to develop an ASF vaccine. In 2024, the institute was awarded an Industry Partnership Award by the Biotechnology and Biological Research Council of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI BBSRC) for working with TVG on a bovine herpesvirus-vectored vaccine against ASF.
"The vaccine delivers several antigenic proteins derived from the ASF virus and is inherently compatible with a DIVA approach to diagnostics and surveillance," said Jeremy Salt, CEO of TVG.
DIVA (differentiating infected from vaccinated animals) or marker vaccines induce an immune response different from that induced by natural infection. Diagnostic testing allows the loosening of restrictions for vaccinated animals, reducing the economic impact on rural economies.
"The development of an effective vaccine has enormous value from an animal welfare, food security and commercial perspective," said Salt. "There is no widely available vaccine against ASF, even for the genotype II that is the cause of the current global epidemic. Recent limited introductions of a live attenuated vaccine in Southeast Asia have been associated with some safety concerns, an issue that TVG's vaccine would address."
- National Hog Farmer
