Vacci-Test™ BD:
Ongoing endemics and epidemics of infectious diseases afflict several species of ruminants regularly consumed by humans. BSE is an infectious disease found in cattle, which are in the family known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies ("TSE"). These diseases are characterized by a long incubation period, a relatively short clinical course of neurological signs, and once in the final stages; the result is 100 percent mortality of the animal. In humans the disease is known as sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease ("CJD") and new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease ("nvCJD"). Both are a class of rare brain TSE diseases. Other TSEs in animals include: Scrapie in Sheep and Cervid Encephalopathy ("Chronic Wasting Disease") in elk and deer. All TSEs are associated with the accumulation of abnormal prion proteins in the brain.
BSE is a degenerative neurological disease in cattle that scientists believe is caused by misfolded and infectious proteins, called "prions" 1, which build up in the central nervous system ("CNS") tissues eventually killing nerve cells. The results are vacuums or holes in the brain. There is "no" immune system response to BSE. Current science indicates that BSE is "not" found in the meat we commonly eat, such as steaks, roasts and ground beef. Studies report that in naturally infected cattle the BSE agent has been found only in CNS tissue, such as brain and spinal cord as well as retina tissue. Scientists believe that BSE does not spread from animal to animal, only through feed containing ruminant-derived meat and bone meal ("MBM") from BSE-infected cattle. The use of ruminant-derived MBM as protein supplement in cattle feed was banned in Canada and the USA in 1997.
The discovery of BSE on May 20, 2003 in Northern Alberta, Canada and December 23, 2003 in a Washington State, USA was a wakeup call for North American producers and consumers in that the threat hanging over the herds might be transmittable to humans. The controversy surrounding that possibility was advanced significantly with the identification of Creutzfeldt-Jakob in a 155 people in the UK in the late 1990's.
Vacci-Test™ BD is the process methodology to detect if cattle have the "potential" to become infected with BSE. At this time, the only existing tests for BSE are post-mortem (performed on dead animals), requiring a specific animal tissue sample. Current testing of Vacci-Test™ BD is based in principle on the detection in the blood of a protein "marker" referred to as "Protein 14-3-3". The lab test results completed by Dr. Louis Léry & Dr. Jacques A. Mayet (the inventors of Vacci-Test™ BD) on 62 known BSE infected tissue samples verified that the Marker showed up each time. These results, along with the results obtained from the current testing of 300 "random" tissue samples, are expected to be completed and ready for publication in scientific journals in October 2004.
The Marker, which is not the infectious agent, is not only produced in the blood when BSE is present, but also in connection with brain tumors; brain trauma; and other infectious diseases of the brain. In fact, this Marker is applicable to all mammals.
A positive diagnosis result does not specifically indicate the presence of BSE, however, at the time of testing it does indicate that the animal is not completely healthy and could have either a brain tumor; brain trauma; or an infectious brain disease, which could potentially be the BSE infection. Animals with BSE would show a positive result for the Marker. Conversely a negative test result of the Marker would indicate that the animal "was healthy" in regards to a brain infection and would be safe for the human food chain.
As a result of the BSE crisis in Canada, with losses to date of approximately $1.6 Billion Cnd. to tax payers, there is an urgent need for a rapid, accurate and inexpensive diagnostic test that could detect the potential of BSE in a blood sample taken from pre-symptomatic cattle. Vacci-Test™ believes Vacci-Test™ BD will prove to be this diagnostic tool, which will create great demand from all producers and government regulators alike.
Vacci-Test™ Corp. is a private Alberta biotechnology corporation whose objective is to perfect, adapt and commercialize the patented Vacci-Test™ technology, that are rapid and economical diagnostic tests for identifying infectious diseases both bacterial and viral.
Intended for use in both human and veterinary medicine, Vacci-Test™ products were researched, developed and manufactured by partnered companies in Europe and will be commercialized by Vacci-Test™ corporation throughout the world.
Dr. Stephane Legastelois, Dr. of Biochemistry
Member Scientific Committee
Dr. Legastelois is President of Indicia Biotechnology (“Indicia”), a European based company from Ouillins, France, which specializes in microparticle technology. Indicia, under the guidance of Dr. Legastelois will focus its efforts on the development of the 2nd generation Vacci-Test™ kits (“Yes/No Cassette”) thus integrating their microparticle technology and covering the entire R&D phase until the validation for the Vacci-Test™ “final cassette kit” is ready for regulatory registration. This process will significantly increase the shelf life of the Vacci-Test™ kit from 18 months up to 3-years.