Chicken vaccines form new virus
The second live attenuated vaccine (a vaccine where part of the virus is still living) was used when the Australian vaccine strain ran out, but the two vaccines combined to form new virus strains, which could now kill thousands of chicken. The viruses don't pose a threat to humans, food or other animals, but suggest the risk of live attenuated vaccines needs to be considered. Image: fotostok_pdv/iStockphoto Research from the University of Melbourne has shown that two different vaccine viruses - used simultaneously to control the same condition in chickens - have combined to produce new infectious viruses, prompting early response from Australia’s veterinary medicines regulator.The vaccines were used to control infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT), an acute respiratory disease occurring in chickens worldwide. ILT can have up to 20% mortality rate in some flocks and has a significant economic and welfare impact in the poultry industry. The research found that when two different ILT...