Bovine TB cattle vaccine field trials start in England

Field trials for a cattle vaccine and a new skin test for bovine tuberculosis (TB) have started in England.

A TB-free farm in Hertfordshire has started the first phase of these “world-leading” trials, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (Apha) announced on Wednesday 7 July.

The project will determine the accuracy and safety of the cattle Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine and diagnostic test to differentiate infected from vaccinated animals (Diva).

See also: Next phase in Defra bovine TB strategy explained

The first phase of the trials (2021) will determine the safety and specificity of the Diva test.

Phase two, with a planned start date in February 2022, will include BCG vaccination of cattle and use of the Diva technology (DST-F) in approximately 1,000 cattle from at least seven herds in the high TB risk or edge areas. 

Expansion plan

If these first trials are successful, the work will be expanded to cattle herds in more farms across England and Wales over the coming months. 

This will allow Defra to generate sufficient evidence to support a market authorisation application to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate to use both products in the UK, with the aim of rolling them out commercially by 2025.

“Bovine TB represents one of the most difficult animal disease challenges we face today,” said the chief veterinary officers from England, Wales and Scotland in a joint statement.

“However, the start of these ground-breaking field trials will be welcome news for many farmers who have been greatly affected by this disease and represents an important step forward in our efforts to deploy a working cattle vaccine by 2025.

“If successful, the world-leading project could result in the first ever deployment of a cattle TB vaccine and Diva skin test and will be instrumental in turning the tide against this terrible disease, which affects many countries around the world.”

Farmers and vets will hope to move a step closer to being able to vaccinate their animals against the disease, helping to save thousands of cattle every year that would have otherwise been culled to prevent the spread of bovine TB to other herds.

Defra says the skin test, which will accompany the vaccine, also represents a major breakthrough by enabling vets to identify cattle that have been vaccinated and those that are infected with the disease – to date this has not been possible.

£100m annual cost

Bovine TB costs taxpayers about £100m every year.

More than 36,000 cattle in England and Wales have had to be slaughtered in the past year to tackle the disease.

In December, Apha – which has more than 500 staff involved in tackling the disease – awarded a contract to Eville & Jones to run clinical field trials in cattle as a result of the culmination of more than 20 years of ground-breaking research at the agency.