USDA’s Agricultural Research Service announced that one of its vaccine candidates can prevent and protect against African swine fever. Specifically, the vaccine shows effectiveness against the current Asian and European strains of the virus. The findings also show that a commercial partner can replicate experimental-level results and prevent the spread of the virus.
The onset of immunity was revealed in approximately one-third of the swine by the second week post-vaccination, with full protection of all swine achieved by the fourth week. The announcement follows a previous announcement that USDA is providing $500 million in funding for preparation and prevention regarding African swine fever.
To date, ARS has successfully engineered and patented five ASF experimental vaccines and has fully executed seven licenses with pharmaceutical companies to develop the vaccines. A commercial vaccine for the ASF virus will be an important part of controlling ASF in outbreak areas. All U.S. vaccine candidates must go through the APHIS regulatory approval process for use in U.S. swine.
The National Association of Farm Broadcasting and the American Farm Bureau Federation contributed to this report.