Necrotic Enteritis Vaccine Being Field Tested in US
US - Schering-Plough Animal Health Corporation has obtained a conditional license from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to begin field testing the first vaccine for helping in controlling mortality due to helping in controlling mortality due to necrotic enteritis in poultry.
25 July 2006
2 minute read
Because the vaccine has proved to be safe and fills a special need, USDA agreed to issue a conditional license after Schering-Plough Animal Health demonstrated a "reasonable expectation of efficacy" for the necrotic enteritis toxoid.
Schering-Plough Animal Health is now conducting large-scale efficacy trials with the toxoid with major U.S. poultry companies while pursuing a full USDA license. It is considered a toxoid because the vaccine is made with the toxin developed by the target pathogen, not the bacterium itself.
"The necrotic enteritis vaccine is yet another example of our commitment to bring innovative, science-based products to the poultry industry to complement our line of coccidiosis vaccines," says Stephen P. Collins, Vice President, Global Poultry for Schering-Plough Animal Health. "We’re grateful to the U.S. poultry companies who are working with us to develop this product for commercial use."
The causative agent of necrotic enteritis, Clostridium perfringens, is a ubiquitous anaerobic bacterium found in soil, dust, feces, feed and poultry litter. C. perfringens has been described as "an opportunistic bacterium" that takes advantage of alterations in the normal bacterial flora of the intestine. It is hoped that the vaccine will provide a drug-free tool for managing this disease.
Schering-Plough Animal Health is now conducting large-scale efficacy trials with the toxoid with major U.S. poultry companies while pursuing a full USDA license. It is considered a toxoid because the vaccine is made with the toxin developed by the target pathogen, not the bacterium itself.
"The necrotic enteritis vaccine is yet another example of our commitment to bring innovative, science-based products to the poultry industry to complement our line of coccidiosis vaccines," says Stephen P. Collins, Vice President, Global Poultry for Schering-Plough Animal Health. "We’re grateful to the U.S. poultry companies who are working with us to develop this product for commercial use."
The causative agent of necrotic enteritis, Clostridium perfringens, is a ubiquitous anaerobic bacterium found in soil, dust, feces, feed and poultry litter. C. perfringens has been described as "an opportunistic bacterium" that takes advantage of alterations in the normal bacterial flora of the intestine. It is hoped that the vaccine will provide a drug-free tool for managing this disease.
