Project Number: 5348-32000-034-05
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Aug 15, 2012
End Date: Sep 17, 2014

Objective:
Develop a sustainable, safe and efficacious vaccine for Theileria parva.

Approach:
The goal is to develop an effective vaccine that controls East Coast fever (ECF) in a context suitable to sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The current five-year project aims to increase the productivity of cattle in SAA through research that leads to the development of modern day vaccines for the control of ECF, a lethal disease of cattle. It directly contributes to meeting the goals of CRP3.7, the CGIAR Research Program (CRP) titled “More meat, milk and fish - by and for the poor” within the sub-component “Dairy value chain in Tanzania”. Two immune responses that contribute to immunity to ECF have been defined; an antibody response directed against T. parva sporozoites (the infective stage of the parasite) and a cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response restricted by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules directed against T. parva schizont infected host cells. The ITM live vaccine induces the latter immunity. Thus, antigens that are the targets of these immune responses form the basis for inclusion in a novel vaccine. A product profile for a subunit vaccine against ECF (1) Recombinant schizont antigen(s) plus-minus sporozoite antigen; (2) Commercially-available delivery/production systems, expression systems, vectors, adjuvants etc.; (3) Stable at 4 degrees centigrade for 2+ years; (4) 95% protection against LD100 challenge in the laboratory; (5) Initial vaccination at one month, and (6) 2 vaccinations plus booster at 1-3 years.