Defined multivalent leptospira antigen platform for broad canine vaccines
A novel antigen platform offers a flexible, cost-effective solution for broad canine Leptospira vaccines by combining peptide specificity with recombinant manufacturability, enabling rapid design for cross-serovar protection.
Overview
Montana State University presents a groundbreaking antigen platform designed to enhance canine Leptospira vaccines. This innovative solution addresses the limitations of current serovar-specific bacterin vaccines by offering broader protection through a recombinant format. The platform enables the rapid design and integration of multiple conserved Leptospira epitopes into a single vaccine product, providing high epitope density and multivalent display for effective cross-serovar immunity. This approach supports scalable and cost-effective vaccine production, bypassing traditional peptide-carrier conjugate complexities.
Technical specifications
Key features:
- Recombinant platform: Utilizes standard microbial production systems to convert encoded sequence units into repetitive antigen outputs.
- High epitope density: Supports the programmable combination of distinct Leptospira epitopes within one vaccine product.
- Broad protection: Targets pivotal canine serovars, including LipL32, OmpL1, LenA, and Lig-family proteins.
- Scalable production: Designed for efficient manufacturing, reducing costs associated with traditional methods.
Technology readiness level
The technology is currently at TRL 3, indicating that active research and development are in progress. Future validation phases include selecting and testing antigens in established animal models, with a focus on advancing candidates through immunogenicity and cross-serovar challenge studies.
About Montana State University
Montana State University's substantial research enterprise growth has been accompanied by focused investments in innovation and research translation, creating new opportunities for companies to engage with MSU research and expertise. A particular strength is MSU’s network of specialized centers, institutes, and industry-accessible core facilities, which bring together multidisciplinary expertise, advanced research infrastructure, testing capabilities, and established pathways for working with industry partners. MSU is one of a select group of universities participating in the NSF's Accelerating Research Translation (ART) program, which is building the capacity and infrastructure needed to translate more research discoveries into solutions with real-world impact. The growing MSU Innovation Campus and expanding incubator infrastructure provide additional opportunities for university-industry interaction, startup development, and technology-focused companies. These efforts are complemented by MSU’s Technology Transfer Office, which works with researchers and companies to protect and license MSU inventions and facilitate industry-sponsored research collaborations.
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