FINAL update from Dr. Arenas indicating a potential vaccine for canine brucellosis has been developed and tested in the laboratory on blood samples. The next step to get this vaccine to market would be to test on actual live dogs.
Canine infection by Brucella spp. constitutes a serious problem for dog breeders and pet owners, leading to the economic burden associated with reproductive loss and veterinary care. Canine brucellosis is also considered a public health concern because of its potential to be transmitted to humans. Within the US, the disease has reemerged due to the chronic persistence of the organism, low dose for infection, low sensitivity and specificity of the current diagnostic tests, and most importantly the lack of a protective vaccine for canine use. Historically in the US, brucellosis control efforts for cattle, sheep, goats and domestic pigs have been successful mainly due to the availability of protective and efficacious vaccines. The goal of our research is to develop a brucellosis vaccine that is safe, stable, free of side effects and efficacious for dogs. Towards this goal, previous funding (CHF Grant- 2175-A) has permitted us to successfully engineer a promising live attenuated vaccine candidate denominated B. canis RM666ΔvjbR. Initial in vitro studies have demonstrated that this candidate is highly attenuated in canine macrophages as well as laboratory animals. In this study we demonstrated that the RM-
666ΔvjbR vaccine candidate induces a robust cellular immune response capable of protecting against infection, and that this vaccine will also provide the means to differentiate vaccinated from naturally infected animals. No animal testing has been performed using funds from AKC Canine Health Foundation. Serum samples utilized for this project are part of the serum repository from our laboratory. Fresh canine blood was obtained from the Texas A&M Teaching Hospital from leftover samples not utilized for patient treatment or diagnostics.
FINAL Research Update Dr. Arenas regarding potential canine brucellosis vaccine
