Published Thursday, 29 May, 2008 at 12:20 PM
Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries
The Honourable Tim Mulherin
Eliminating the need for needles
Eliminating the need for needles
Vaccinating thousands of livestock could soon be as simple as a squirt up the nose or a drop in the feed, Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries Tim Mulherin said today.
“Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries scientists, doctors Neena Mitter and Tim Mahony, are working to develop highly effective and flexible veterinary vaccine delivery technologies,’’ Mr Mulherin said.
“During the Equine Influenza outbreak in Queensland and New South Wales the vaccination of more than 70,000 horses brought home the need to develop new vaccine delivery methods.
“Our scientists’ aim is to develop single dose, cost effective, easy to administer, easy to store veterinary vaccines that don’t have to be injected.’’
Mr Mulherin said that under the national research and development framework, Queensland has been acknowledged as a leader in livestock industries research.
Drs Mitter and Mahony are based in laboratories at the DPI&F Queensland Agricultural Biotechnology Centre, located at The University of Queensland St Lucia campus. They are conducting the research in collaboration with Professor Max Lu, Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering & Nanotechnology.
Dr Mitter said the delivery mechanism for vaccines was probably the most significant factor when considering the end user.
“The majority of current vaccines are comprised of live, weakened or killed pathogens and are delivered by injection, which often require multiple doses.
“It is also a costly delivery mechanism that can cause lesions to form at the injection point in the animal.”
Dr Mahony said nano-based vaccine delivery would provide Queensland with a distinct global competitive advantage in livestock applications.
“We’re also seeking to achieve vaccinations that have minimal side effects and improve the immunity within the animal by using nanoparticles as the method for delivering the vaccine.”
He said the nano-vaccine and its delivery would be more socially acceptable as it would steer away from the use of live attenuated pathogens, minimise the side effects of the injection on animals and reduce the use of chemicals to treat pests and diseases.
Dr Mahony said development of the technology would provide significant benefits to the livestock industry, and there would be a clear extension of the research to human therapeutics.
Media:
Minister’s office 3239 6530
DPI&F: 3239 0698
Vaccinating thousands of livestock could soon be as simple as a squirt up the nose or a drop in the feed, Minister for Primary Industries and Fisheries Tim Mulherin said today.
“Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries scientists, doctors Neena Mitter and Tim Mahony, are working to develop highly effective and flexible veterinary vaccine delivery technologies,’’ Mr Mulherin said.
“During the Equine Influenza outbreak in Queensland and New South Wales the vaccination of more than 70,000 horses brought home the need to develop new vaccine delivery methods.
“Our scientists’ aim is to develop single dose, cost effective, easy to administer, easy to store veterinary vaccines that don’t have to be injected.’’
Mr Mulherin said that under the national research and development framework, Queensland has been acknowledged as a leader in livestock industries research.
Drs Mitter and Mahony are based in laboratories at the DPI&F Queensland Agricultural Biotechnology Centre, located at The University of Queensland St Lucia campus. They are conducting the research in collaboration with Professor Max Lu, Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering & Nanotechnology.
Dr Mitter said the delivery mechanism for vaccines was probably the most significant factor when considering the end user.
“The majority of current vaccines are comprised of live, weakened or killed pathogens and are delivered by injection, which often require multiple doses.
“It is also a costly delivery mechanism that can cause lesions to form at the injection point in the animal.”
Dr Mahony said nano-based vaccine delivery would provide Queensland with a distinct global competitive advantage in livestock applications.
“We’re also seeking to achieve vaccinations that have minimal side effects and improve the immunity within the animal by using nanoparticles as the method for delivering the vaccine.”
He said the nano-vaccine and its delivery would be more socially acceptable as it would steer away from the use of live attenuated pathogens, minimise the side effects of the injection on animals and reduce the use of chemicals to treat pests and diseases.
Dr Mahony said development of the technology would provide significant benefits to the livestock industry, and there would be a clear extension of the research to human therapeutics.
Media:
Minister’s office 3239 6530
DPI&F: 3239 0698