A next generation vaccine for louping ill control (ENRA 2025 poster)

Work in the current, and previous, Strategic Research Programmes has developed a new vaccine to control louping ill, a tick-borne disease primarily affecting sheep and red grouse. Louping ill causes significant economic losses for farmers and grouse estates in Scotland and is increasing in prevalence. Working together with key industry partners, and with funding from farming and moorland stakeholders, a novel approach is now being taken to commercialise the vaccine. This will involve transferring the production process to commercial scale before performing studies to ensure the safety and effectiveness of the new vaccine formulation. Data from these trials will be used to prepare a comprehensive regulatory proposal, which will be submitted to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, for market registration of the vaccine prior to it becoming commercially available. The availability of a new louping ill vaccine will be a valuable tool for sheep producers seeking to control this devastating disease.