Research Gaps
Epidemiology, Transmission and Modelling
- Pathogenesis and epidemiology for many livestock and zoonotic pathogens
- Epidemiology and evolution of animal pathogens e.g. carrier status, development of resistance
- Modelling: efficacy of vaccines; cost-effectiveness of vaccine development; coverage; host dynamics; knowledge of pathogen/host immune traits to design vaccines; contact networks
- Integrated multidisciplinary studies e.g. transmission in relation to efficacy
- Effective vaccines - prevention of infection and transmission. Different livestock scenarios – equine, swine, poultry other
- Big data and whole genome analysis
- Herd Immunity
One Health Approach
- Interaction with Human Vaccinology community.
- Communication between veterinary scientists from different species or specialties
- Help providing: critical mass in vaccine design and development
- Exploiting synergies in human and veterinary vaccine development
- Sharing essential core facilities and know-how
- Importance of zoonotic infection: target the animal vector for human disease eradication.
- Complementary studies in human and animal models of pathogen challenge
- Integration of human experimental immunology models with primate /other animal models
- Transferability of expertise and regulatory regimes
Interaction with Industry
- Commercial impact of veterinary vaccines other than for poultry and pigs
- Accelerating vaccine development to get products to market sooner
- Collaboration between industry and academia within the UK
- Effective links with industry and translation
- Improving interactions with the animal health industry
Translation
- Support for good large scale vaccine trials in animals
- Translating experimental findings through to validated products
- Translational medicine research, clinical trial design improvement
- Can field conditions be manipulated to optimize vaccine responses
- Bridging basic research on pathogen biology and pre-commercial translational research aimed at putting a specific product into the market.
- Critical gaps of understanding and communication between the market, i.e. animal health and livestock industries and the academic sector
Economics
- Economic impact of veterinary diseases in livestock species in the UK (endemic diseases) or potential impact (Exotic diseases) to focus funding
- Vaccine effectiveness: needs to be to give adequate protection in the field to be economically acceptable
- Any candidate vaccine should be available at a sufficiently low cost to enable its deployment
- Lack of technology to generate multiple subunit vaccine antigens in a cost-effective manner
- Appropriate financial models for development and appropriate motivations for farmers to adopt vaccines
Social Acceptance
- Anticipating public/veterinary perception of any new products.
- Effective interdisciplinary integration between natural and social sciences
- Translate basic research through to products and processes that meet societal needs
- Involvement of social scientists who also have a good understanding of the science and technology being developed and of innovation and regulatory processes
- Costs and benefits to individuals and society.
Surveillance
- Field-based surveillance within wider animal populations of vaccine coverage and effectiveness
- Prevalence data on known pathogens and the identification of emerging and unknown/undiscovered pathogens.