A revolutionary plant-cell produced vaccine developed by Dow AgroSciences for animal health has made it to the final three at an international award ceremony.

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Dow AgroSciences’ Concert ™ plant-cell produced vaccine production system was placed in the best technical innovation category at the first annual Animal Pharm Industry Excellence Awards, held in London.  The award was in recognition of the novel technology developed by the company.  With a registration pathway also in place Dow AgroSciences is already developing new products using this technology.
“Being a finalist in this category is an excellent example of how Dow AgroSciences is gaining international recognition for high quality innovation, and the teamwork required to make these innovations happen,” says David Scorer, Dow AgroSciences’ regional commercial manager for Northern Europe.

“A plant-cell produced vaccine does not have the concerns or challenges associated with making vaccines in whole plants or food crops.  They are a significant improvement over traditional vaccines because they don’t contain any components of animal origin,” explains Mr Scorer.

The Concert ™ plant-cell produced system utilises plant cells instead of whole plants in a secure, bio-contained environment to produce vaccines in a way that is safer, faster and more environmentally sound than traditional methods. The system uses only the necessary parts of the disease-causing agent to stimulate immunity in a manufacturing process that is totally free of animal components.

Dow AgroSciences received the world’s first ever regulatory approval for a plant-made vaccine from the USDA Center for Veterinary Biologics (CVB) in January 2006.  The approval represented the first time any plant-made product had successfully demonstrated technology that met the stringent product development regulatory requirements, and was the first licensed vaccine produced using the Concert ™ plant-cell-produced system.

“We are very proud of the accomplishments of our animal health team,” says Mr Scorer.  “Being the first company to ever register a plant-made vaccine was a remarkable accomplishment, and we are delighted that the excellence demonstrated by our team is being recognised on an international stage.”

Plant-cell produced vaccines:

• Eliminate the risk of animal virus contaminants associated with current production systems
• Are uniquely suited to produce subunits that cannot revert to virulence and shed to other animals in the same environment
• Can be targeted against the specific parts of the disease agent that are required for immunity since only the subunit goes into the vaccine
• Are produced in a totally bio-contained process – a sealed and sterile environment
• Are highly stable and thus provide storage and handling advantages along with consistent performance

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