Conditional approval for avian influenza vaccine

Potentially catastrophic problems of Avian influenza may soon be diminished with the wide availability of a vaccine for poultry.The U S Department of Agriculture has conditionally approved the first DNA vaccine for poultry in the battle against avian influenza. The conditional license granted to Montana-based AgriLabs for high pathogenic H5 will provide a tool for US poultry producers if stockpiling is needed for future cases of avian influenza. A spokesman for the company said the move was a major milestone in meeting the promise of DNA vaccines in animal health. DNA vaccines are attractive because they don’t expose the animals being treated to disease-producing organisms and there is no risk of a modified pathogen mutating back to a virulent form. The vaccines also provide the ability to differentiate among infected and vaccinated animals. The approval will allow production of the vaccine to be stockpiled for future use in the event of an outbreak.