Indirect Prevention of High Path Flu Zoonosis through Universal Vaccination

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT Highly pathogenic and low pathogenic strains of avian influenza continue to circulate and infect birds in Asia with occa- sional spread into the North American flyway. These necessitate the culling of any poultry farms that test positive for these strains. Furthermore, through continued circulation, humans remain under constant threat that one of these strains will reassort and infect humans. While the current strategy for combating these strains is surveillance and biosecurity, these strategies clearly do not work in many parts of the world, as they are hot zones for these viruses. As an alternative, vaccinations for poultry and waterfowl would certainly be a boon for human health as they would restrict the number of influenza strains in these flu reservoirs. Here, we seek to use mRNA vaccines that code for a universal flu Hemagglutinin antigen we have developed. In tandem with polyanhydride delivery vehicles that impart thermostability to mRNA and serve as antigen depots, we will vaccinate chicken eggs to determine efficacy against highly pathogenic and low patho- genic avian influenza strains. We will also develop transgenic mealworms to use as booster or as primary vaccines for poultry, but eventually waterfowl, for future use as flu vaccine bait stations.