Monitoring the Subolesin Vaccine Field Trial for Safer Control of Cattle Ticks Amidst Increasing Acaricide Resistance in Uganda
Fredrick Kabi,
Moses Dhikusooka,
Moses Matovu,
Swidiq Mugerwa,
Paul Kasaija,
Patrick Emudong,
Halid Kirunda,
Marinela Contreras,
Christian Gortazar,
Jose De la Fuente
Affiliations
Fredrick Kabi
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Moses Dhikusooka
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Moses Matovu
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Swidiq Mugerwa
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Paul Kasaija
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Patrick Emudong
National Livestock Resources Research Institute (NaLIRRI/NARO), Kampala P.O. Box 5704, Uganda
Halid Kirunda
Mbarara Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MbaZARDI), Mbarara City P.O. Box 389, Uganda
Marinela Contreras
SaBio, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientí ficas (CSIC), Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM)-Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (JCCM), Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
Christian Gortazar
SaBio, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientí ficas (CSIC), Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM)-Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (JCCM), Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
Jose De la Fuente
SaBio, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientí ficas (CSIC), Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM)-Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (JCCM), Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
A collaboration program was established between the group of Health and Biotechnology (SaBio) of the IREC Institute of Game and Wildlife Research (CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Spain) and the National Agricultural Research Organization of Uganda (NARO) for the development of vaccines for the control of cattle ticks in Uganda. Controlled pen trials identified a tick protective antigen, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus Subolesin, and a cross-species-effective vaccine formulation. As the next step, a controlled vaccine field trial has been approved by Ugandan state regulatory authorities, the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) and the National Drug Authority (NDA), to evaluate the efficacy and effectiveness of the vaccine formulation for the control of cattle tick infestations under field conditions. The results of this trial may lead to the approval of the vaccine for application in Uganda to improve cattle health and production while reducing the use of acaricides.
