A recent article by Katarina Zimmer in The Scientist examines how close we are to developing a vaccine to prevent African swine fever (ASF). It contains an extended discussion of the work of Lucilla Steinaa, an immunologist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Steinaa has been focusing on the specific types of the swine … Continue reading
An interview with Dirk Pfeiffer, François Roger, Linda Dixon and Dieter Schillinger to better understand existing knowledge gaps between research findings managing the spread of African swine fever and actionable solutions. Continue reading
My name is Ekta Patel. I’m communications manager for ILRI’s Bioscience Directorate. I’m an unusual species. I come from an Indian background, but while most Indians in East Africa go into business, I had a passion for molecular biology and became a scientist. Continue reading
Smaller than 100 nanometres in diameter—about 60 times smaller than the width of human hair and comparable in size to microscopic structures within cells—synthetically produced nanoparticles are readily incorporated into biological systems. These ‘ultrafine particles’, which can be produced using several methods, are of increasing scientific interest. Very stable and harmless to plants and … Continue reading
Peste des petits ruminants (PPR), also known as ‘goat plague’, is a viral disease related to rinderpest of sheep as well as goats. This contagious transboundary disease hurts the livelihoods of millions of small-scale livestock farmers, threatening food security with estimated economic losses exceeding USD1.5 billion per year. The disease threatens 80 per cent of … Continue reading
Scientists working at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) have found a way to significantly increase the vaccination coverage of goats and sheep in the Sahel against one of the most common and widely feared animal diseases—the peste des petits ruminants (PPR) or ovine rinderpest—a viral infection which is endemic to the region and kills … Continue reading
Scientists from ILRI, UK, US, Australia and Tanzania have been working together since 2016 to test an experimental vaccine for malignant catarrhal fever (MCF). They tested an attenuated vaccine strain of MCF (AlHV-1 C500) at ILRI’s Kapiti Research Station. Continue reading
