National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) |
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| Development of Reproductive Control Methods for Overabundant Birds and Mammals AdjuVac™
A typical disease vaccine primes the immune system to be on the alert for an infection caused by organisms with properties similar to those of the vaccine. Antibodies to the disease may be few in number or absent until the infection occurs. The infection then serves as a booster that stimulates an immediate immune response, protecting the vaccinated animal. For an immunocontraceptive vaccine to be effective, however, it must continually produce a high contraceptive antibody titer, so the booster effect must come from a different, nondisease mechanism—the adjuvant. NWRC has modified and tested a USDA-approved Johne’s vaccine called Mycopar™ as a replacement for Freund’s adjuvant. Mycopar™ has already been approved for use in food animals by APHIS. The new adjuvant, which NWRC scientists have named AdjuVac™, contains a small quantity of M. avium, a common, generally nonpathogenic bacterium found in many species of domesticated and wild animals. NWRC scientists are testing AdjuVac™ in numerous wildlife species, and it appears to be an effective replacement for Freund’s as an adjuvant for contraceptive vaccines. The GnRH vaccine GonaCon/AdjuVac™, developed by NWRC, has a USDA/APHIS patent-pending status. The success of the single-injection GonaCon™ contraceptive vaccine is due to the unique design of the GnRH/mollusk conjugate in combination with NWRC's newly developed adjuvant, AdjuVac™. Scientists at NWRC have spent 12 years developing the single-injection GonaCon™ vaccine, which will not be available commercially until it receives FDA approval. The adjuvant portion of the vaccine, however, is available to immunologists and biomedical researchers at a very reasonable price. We are convinced that this adjuvant, which can only be used for research animals, will improve the immune response of almost any antigen. For pricing and additional information about AdjuVac™ adjuvant, please contact the USDA Pocatello Supply Depot, 238 East Dillon, Pocatello, Idaho 83201 (telephone 208-236-6920). Project
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Though
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has objected to its use
on several grounds, including concerns related to target animal safety
and human consumption of treated animals, the most popular (and controversial)
adjuvant is Freund’s Adjuvant. This adjuvant, widely used since
1945, has long remained popular among immunologists because it is so
effective with all types of antigens. It is now known that the addition
of Mycobacterium (as in Freund’s complete adjuvant, FCA) provides
a critical “danger signal” to the immune system that is
the key to Freund’s success. Although many other adjuvants have
been developed since the initial appearance of Freund’s, none
has matched the effectiveness of FCA.
Last Modified: October 9, 2007