Cuban company increases export of cattle tick vaccine

CAMAGUEY, Cuba, Dec 15 (ACN) The Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) of Camagüey exported this year 50 percent more Gavac immunogen, used against cattle ticks of the genus Rhipicephalus (boophilus) microplus.

Over 150 thousand doses of the vaccine were sold in Brazil, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Panama and Angola, which allowed the country to earn more than 97,000 dollars, equivalent to more than 2,300,000 Cuban pesos, Ailyn Nordelo Valdivia, head of the research and development department of the aforementioned institution, informed ACN.

As a contribution to the integral control program, 400 thousand doses of Gavac were delivered to cover all cattle herds of the province of Camagüey, and one and a half million doses were distributed nationwide.

This year, the CIGB also achieved a production record of more than 1.8 million doses of the Porvac vaccine, used in 97 genetic and multiplier centers in the country for the eradication of classical swine fever.

The vaccine against sea lice is currently under development, of which three batches have already been produced and released of enriched raw material, which will be part of the transfer for its registration and subsequent commercialization, said the young researcher.

During the year, the group advanced in the production processes of agronomic evaluations of the new bionematicide and biofungicide strain H32, and in 2022 it intends to begin field trials and toxicological and ecotoxicological tests, in order to register the product in 2023.

Nordelo Valdivia commented that it has a broad spectrum of use and, although the results are preliminary at the farm and laboratory levels, there are very good indicators in terms of its antifungal, nematicide and growth promotion capacity.

He exemplified that they would use it firstly in house crops, but they would also take it to open field crops, such as guava and banana, although its applicability as an insecticide against the different pests that attack beans and rice could be evaluated.

The standardization of the process to obtain the vaccine candidate against rabbit hemorrhagic fever and the improvement of analytical techniques stand out among the actions undertaken, in order to achieve in the first quarter of 2022 the first batches to carry out clinical trials and then register the vaccine in the Caribbean nation.

Another of the entity's results is the development of a new vaccine candidate against different genus of ticks, which is still in its initial stage.

Although the CIGB of Camagüey is distinguished by the search for solutions for animal and plant health, this year it participated in the clinical trial of the anti-COVID-19 Abdala immunogen, and also in the sanitary intervention in the population.