Novartis Animal Health, Inc. has entered into an agreement with Intervet/Schering-Plough that grants exclusive rights to Novartis to potentially commercialise a new Pancreas Disease (PD) vaccine for use in farmed salmon.
The license deal allows Novartis Animal Health to continue development of its new PD vaccine, which uses the same technology as the Novartis Apex IHN vaccine currently on the market in Canada. Early studies have demonstrated high levels of efficacy and favourable levels of protection from the PD virus.
The Novartis vaccine candidate has the potential to offer salmon producers in Norway, UK and Ireland a unique alternative for managing this costly disease, which is prevalent in these salmon producing areas. Additionally, the Novartis vaccine would support a broader approach to fish health and successful management of the disease, complementing the Norvax® Compact PD vaccine introduced by Intervet/Schering-Plough in 2008.
Novartis Animal Health originally presented information on the new PD vaccine candidate in September 2009 at the European Association of Fish Pathologists meeting held in Prague. More development work has followed, and Novartis is committed to working through the regulatory processes and requirements in its efforts to commercialise the vaccine.
