Poultry vaccine

A vaccine developed by government researchers holds great promise of eradicating the deadly Newcastle Disease (NCD) that has long been the scourge of fowls in the country.

The vaccine was the product of a research project undertaken by the Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Unit 7 (DA-RFU 7) and the DA Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).

The research project, including laboratory and field experiments, is supported by the DA Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) through a research grant for poultry and livestock program. A Japanese volunteer, together with Filipino researchers, assisted in generating the technology on vaccine production.

The research team is headed by Dr. Rachel B. Cadeliña, agricultural center chief of the DA-RFU 7 Biologics Vaccine Production Laboratory.

Titled “Efficacy of Locally-developed Inactivated Oil Emulsion Newcastle Disease Vaccine in Native Chicken,” the research won the 2007 PSAS (Philippine Society of Animal Science) award for the health and welfare research category.

The award was given at the PSAS 44th Scientific Seminar and Annual Convention held at the CSB International Conference Center and Hotel in Manila.

Dr. Cadekiña, as reported by BAR’s Dr. Marlowe Aquino, said her team has been working on the vaccine for two years, specifically within Central Visayas.

Initial results of the studies showed that the vaccine, which is much cheaper than the commercially prepared ones, can eradicate the NCD even within the free range production management system of native chicken.

“Given the utility and application of the local NCD vaccines, a 100-percent survival rate is expected when applied properly compared to zero or unvaccinated native chicken during production management,” Dr. Aquino wrote.

The vaccines are now distributed to backyard native chicken raisers through the provincial veterinary offices of the Region 7 provinces.

Plans for NCD vaccination in the entire Visayas and selected Mindanao areas are being finalized.

Endemic in  almost all regions of the country, NCD is a highly infectious viral disease that affects poultry and other birds, attacking mostly the lungs and nervous system. Commercial chicken flocks affected by it could immediately incur 90 to 100 percent  mortality rate.

The BAI-published Animal Health Yearbook 2000 states that out of 130,479 reported cases, 41,597 (31.9 percent) were the cited deaths caused by NCD. The yearbook also recorded that the poultry industry loses P6.1 billion annually owing to the disease. — Rudy A. Fernandez