Applied research of a novel, cost effective virus like particle rabies vaccine

狂犬病是一种由病毒感染中枢神经系统引起的急性致命疾病。狂犬病病毒最常通过受感染（狂犬病）动物(如狗、蝙蝠和浣熊（病媒）的咬伤和唾液传播。未接种暴露后疫苗的狂犬病感染者几乎100%会死亡。这项申请是为了概念验证（PoC）拨款，以测试使用我们的新型病毒样颗粒（VLP）疫苗技术平台生产低成本，高效且安全的疫苗。这项应用将建立在先前的研究基础上，以观察是否可以在免疫原性VLPs表面产生狂犬病抗原，其产量可能比目前上市的传统疫苗高几个数量级。此外，与在细胞培养中生长并灭活的狂犬病病毒生产的传统疫苗不同，我们的VLPs缺乏功能性狂犬病遗传物质，不会有感染生产工厂工人或环境逃逸的风险，因此需要较低的密封设施。狂犬病暴露后疫苗接种的高昂费用使其超出了世界上受影响最严重的地方病地区（中国、印度和非洲）的大部分人口所能承受的范围，这些地区每年有5万人死于该病。负担得起的疫苗应能在这些市场上更广泛地进行媒介和接触后疫苗接种。这将挽救成千上万人的生命，这样做也会扩大并占据狂犬病疫苗市场的重要市场份额。机会也存在于英国、欧洲（主要是旅行疫苗接种）和北美（病媒控制、接触后疫苗接种和旅行疫苗接种）等市场。我们相信我们的技术有潜力跨越到其他重要的全球性疾病，并为英国制造商向国际市场出口开辟机会。

Rabies is an acute, lethal disease caused by a virus infection of the central nervous system.The rabies virus is most often spread by a bite and saliva from an infected (rabid) animal e.g.,dogs, bats & raccoons (disease vector). Virtually 100% of those infected with rabies who donot receive post exposure vaccination will die.This application is for a Proof of Concept (PoC) grant to test the use our novel virus- likeparticle (VLP) vaccine technology platform to produce low cost, highly effective yet saferabies vaccines. The application will build on previous research to see if the rabies antigen canbe produced on the surface of immunogenic VLPs at yields orders of magnitude greater thanis possible with currently marketed conventional vaccines. Furthermore, unlike conventionalvaccines produced from live rabies virus grown in cell culture and inactivated, our VLPs,lacking functional rabies genetic material, will carry no risk of infecting production plantworkers or environmental escape and therefore require lower containment facilities.The high cost of rabies post-exposure vaccination puts it beyond the reach of large populationsegments in the world’s worst affected enzootic regions (China, India & Africa) wherec50,000 lives are lost to the disease each year. Affordable vaccines should allow morewidespread vector and post-exposure vaccination in these markets. This would save thousandsof lives and in so doing also expand and take a significant market share of the rabies vaccinemarket. Opportunities also exist in markets such as UK, Europe (mainly travel vaccination)and North America (vector control, post exposure vaccination and travel vaccination.)We believe our technology has the potential to cross over to other important global diseasesand open up the opportunity for export to international markets from UK manufacturers.