Project Number: 3625-32000-061-04
Project Type: Specific C/A

Start Date: Jul 30, 2002
End Date: Jan 31, 2005

Objective:
The objective is to use previously-identified partial gene sequences of Brucella abortus which mediate protective immunity in a murine model of brucellosis, optimize their immunologic characteristics in genetic vaccines and compare their ability to induce protective immunity to genetic vaccines containing the full-length copies of the genes.

Approach:
The collaborator will provide the sequences of Brucella abortus gene fragments which induced protection in a previous collaborative project. Using data from the B. abortus genome sequencing project, ARS scientists will provide full-length copies of the genes of interest. The collaborator will express the partial and full-length genes in plasmid vectors. In preparation of the plasmid vectors, the collaborator will consider optimizing codon usage, utilizing plasmids with different promotors or co-expressing gene sequences that will function as immunologic adjuvants, to maximize the ability of the genomic vaccines to induce protective immune responses. The collaborator will provide these plasmid preparations to ARS scientists for vaccination of mice. After the last booster vaccination, ARS scientists will challenge mice with a virulent strain of B. abortus using standard techniques. The ARS scientists will euthanize the mice after challenge and use standard techniques to identify which individual plasmids induce protective immune responses against B. abortus.

Project Team

Olsen, Steven Bricker, Betsy Rich McCurdy - Vice President 515-663-7230

Project Annual Reports

FY 2003

Related National Programs

Animal Health (103)