Pub Date : 2026-01-13DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2026.101873
Francisco Reviriego-Gordejo , Dries Minne , Ivo Claassen , Jean-Charles Cavitte , Annemarie Bouma , Olivier Debaere , Max Bastian , Dόnal Sammin , Ely Bénéré , Ron Bergevoet , Claude Saegerman , Jacqueline Poot , Olivier Espeisse , Jean-Christophe Audonnet , Sandra Manzanares-Laya , Frédéric Descamps
Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) in animals are responsible for disruptive outbreaks in the agricultural sector. Animal health preparedness includes timely and effective vaccines, which face regulatory and economic constraints in the European Union (EU). The International Alliance for Biological Standardization hosted a meeting to address these challenges and promote discussion between different European stakeholders, with the aims of identifying current preparedness obstacles in the EU and sharing different experiences from Member States, while additionally sharing the veterinary vaccine industry perspective.
Preparedness must distinguish between expected events (usually slow-spreading diseases) and unexpected events (typically EIDs), for which the appropriate vaccination strategies remain uncertain. Key considerations include economic constraints, defining target diseases and species, and balancing the aim for ideal vaccines vs timely efficacious vaccines. Ultimately, decision-makers must address whether to react to outbreaks or proactively develop solutions in advance. Practical recommendations based on the derived discussion included the development of a collaborative framework for decision-making between different stakeholders, dedicated funds for EIDs, communication strategies with the general public, addressing logistical issues, and implementing regulatory advances to respond to emergency situations, applying pragmatic and risk-balanced approaches.
{"title":"Preparedness and response to emerging veterinary disease outbreaks – A meeting report","authors":"Francisco Reviriego-Gordejo , Dries Minne , Ivo Claassen , Jean-Charles Cavitte , Annemarie Bouma , Olivier Debaere , Max Bastian , Dόnal Sammin , Ely Bénéré , Ron Bergevoet , Claude Saegerman , Jacqueline Poot , Olivier Espeisse , Jean-Christophe Audonnet , Sandra Manzanares-Laya , Frédéric Descamps","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2026.101873","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2026.101873","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) in animals are responsible for disruptive outbreaks in the agricultural sector. Animal health preparedness includes timely and effective vaccines, which face regulatory and economic constraints in the European Union (EU). The International Alliance for Biological Standardization hosted a meeting to address these challenges and promote discussion between different European stakeholders, with the aims of identifying current preparedness obstacles in the EU and sharing different experiences from Member States, while additionally sharing the veterinary vaccine industry perspective.</div><div>Preparedness must distinguish between expected events (usually slow-spreading diseases) and unexpected events (typically EIDs), for which the appropriate vaccination strategies remain uncertain. Key considerations include economic constraints, defining target diseases and species, and balancing the aim for ideal vaccines vs timely efficacious vaccines. Ultimately, decision-makers must address whether to react to outbreaks or proactively develop solutions in advance. Practical recommendations based on the derived discussion included the development of a collaborative framework for decision-making between different stakeholders, dedicated funds for EIDs, communication strategies with the general public, addressing logistical issues, and implementing regulatory advances to respond to emergency situations, applying pragmatic and risk-balanced approaches.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"93 ","pages":"Article 101873"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145977548","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-11DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101870
Daniela Tendler Leibel Bacellar , Cristiane Santino da Silva , Antonio Alves Pereira-Júnior , Wlamir Correa de Moura , Maria Helena Simões Villas-Boas , Ana Luiza de Mattos-Guaraldi
Diphtheria is an acute infectious disease that can be fatal due to the action of diphtheria toxin (DT). Diphtheria antitoxin (DAT) remains essential for treatment and must be administered within two days of symptom onset to effectively neutralize circulating DT. Immediate availability of DAT is critical, especially during outbreaks. Potency testing is required before lot release, yet current pharmacopeial methods still rely on in vivo assays, such as the subcutaneous toxin neutralization test (TNT-SC) or intradermal TNT (TNT-ID). In response to efforts to reduce animal use, this study aimed to validate an in vitro potency assay for DAT using Vero cells, as an alternative to the in vivo TNT-SC for lot release. Twelve DAT samples were tested using the in vivo method and the alternative in vitro assay. Diagnostic performance (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy), agreement (Lin's CCC, Bland–Altman analysis), linearity, precision, and selectivity were evaluated. The in vitro assay showed high concordance with the in vivo method (CCC >0.90) and correctly classified all samples regarding conformity status. The assay demonstrated acceptable linearity and precision (gCV% ≤ 30 %). These results support the Vero cell assay as a relevant and reliable full replacement for in vivo TNT-SC in DAT potency determination.
{"title":"Diphtheria antitoxin potency assay: an in vitro alternative to the in vivo subcutaneous toxin neutralization test","authors":"Daniela Tendler Leibel Bacellar , Cristiane Santino da Silva , Antonio Alves Pereira-Júnior , Wlamir Correa de Moura , Maria Helena Simões Villas-Boas , Ana Luiza de Mattos-Guaraldi","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101870","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101870","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Diphtheria is an acute infectious disease that can be fatal due to the action of diphtheria toxin (DT). Diphtheria antitoxin (DAT) remains essential for treatment and must be administered within two days of symptom onset to effectively neutralize circulating DT. Immediate availability of DAT is critical, especially during outbreaks. Potency testing is required before lot release, yet current pharmacopeial methods still rely on <em>in vivo</em> assays, such as the subcutaneous toxin neutralization test (TNT-SC) or intradermal TNT (TNT-ID). In response to efforts to reduce animal use, this study aimed to validate an <em>in vitro</em> potency assay for DAT using Vero cells, as an alternative to the <em>in vivo</em> TNT-SC for lot release. Twelve DAT samples were tested using the <em>in vivo</em> method and the alternative <em>in vitro</em> assay. Diagnostic performance (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy), agreement (Lin's CCC, Bland–Altman analysis), linearity, precision, and selectivity were evaluated. The <em>in vitro</em> assay showed high concordance with the <em>in vivo</em> method (CCC >0.90) and correctly classified all samples regarding conformity status. The assay demonstrated acceptable linearity and precision (gCV% ≤ 30 %). These results support the Vero cell assay as a relevant and reliable full replacement for <em>in vivo</em> TNT-SC in DAT potency determination.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"93 ","pages":"Article 101870"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145712287","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101850
Bhagwati Khatri , Peggy Riese , Hanna Shkarlet , Daniella Mortier , Helen McShane , Paul W. Bowyer , Edmond Remarque
This study focuses on harmonising the competition ELISA (cELISA) assay for Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum), using the 1st WHO reference reagent for anti-malaria (P. falciparum) human reference serum (10/198). Antibody-mediated immune responses against the Apical Membrane Antigen 1 (AMA1) play a significant role in protection against malaria. However, the sequence diversity of AMA1 and cross-reactivity among variants pose challenges in assessing antibody responses. To address this, the cELISA assay was selected to examine cross-reactive antibody responses against different variants.
The harmonisation process for cELISA was performed in three laboratories. The 10/198 served as an internal standard for the calculation of IgG concentrations in the cELISA using ADAMSEL software. Additionally, a novel semi-automated analytical tool was developed in the R-statistics environment. This tool is freely available for download and streamlines generating results while minimising human error.
This study demonstrated the effectiveness of the 1st WHO reference reagent as a standard for cELISA. Additionally, the ADAMSEL software and R-platform tool provide a user-friendly and accessible tool for the analysis of cELISA data. Its automation capabilities improve efficiency and ensure global accessibility at no cost, benefitting laboratories with limited resources.
{"title":"Evaluation of 1st WHO anti-malaria reference reagent for competition ELISA harmonisation and development of ADAMSEL analytical platform","authors":"Bhagwati Khatri , Peggy Riese , Hanna Shkarlet , Daniella Mortier , Helen McShane , Paul W. Bowyer , Edmond Remarque","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101850","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101850","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study focuses on harmonising the competition ELISA (cELISA) assay for <em>Plasmodium falciparum</em> (<em>P. falciparum</em>), using the 1st WHO reference reagent for anti-malaria (<em>P. falciparum</em>) human reference serum (10/198). Antibody-mediated immune responses against the Apical Membrane Antigen 1 (AMA1) play a significant role in protection against malaria. However, the sequence diversity of AMA1 and cross-reactivity among variants pose challenges in assessing antibody responses. To address this, the cELISA assay was selected to examine cross-reactive antibody responses against different variants.</div><div>The harmonisation process for cELISA was performed in three laboratories. The 10/198 served as an internal standard for the calculation of IgG concentrations in the cELISA using ADAMSEL software. Additionally, a novel semi-automated analytical tool was developed in the R-statistics environment. This tool is freely available for download and streamlines generating results while minimising human error.</div><div>This study demonstrated the effectiveness of the 1st WHO reference reagent as a standard for cELISA. Additionally, the ADAMSEL software and R-platform tool provide a user-friendly and accessible tool for the analysis of cELISA data. Its automation capabilities improve efficiency and ensure global accessibility at no cost, benefitting laboratories with limited resources.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"92 ","pages":"Article 101850"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144876851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101863
Nicolás Berardo Blanch , Diego Ignacio Olivero , Christian Leandro Macoretta , Oscar Pérez , Matías Fingermann
Since their introduction over a century ago, antivenoms have played a central role in Public Health, especially in the world's least developed regions. They are, in most cases, the only effective treatment for envenomation accidents by poisonous animals. A big proportion of currently available antivenoms are based on F(ab’)2 immunoglobulin fragments, produced from hyperimmune equine plasma, following slightly modified protocols developed several decades ago. These protocols show severe limitations for processing starting materials with high lipid contents. In this work, we propose minor modifications to these traditional procedures, based on the addition of octanoic acid, that significantly increase their lipid removal capacities. The method designed for use at the final stages showed reductions of 85–98 % and 64–99 % in cholesterol and phosphatidylcholines, respectively. An alternative, intended for use at the initial stages of the process, improved lipid removal capacity in three out of four independent hyperimmune equine plasmas assayed. Notably, a significant reduction in oligomeric F(ab’)2 species was also observed in all octanoic acid-treated samples. Thus, the methodologies developed and optimised in this work present simple and affordable alternatives to overcome lipid removal limitations of traditional antivenom-producing protocols.
{"title":"Octanoic acid addition: a simple, affordable modification that overcomes lipid removal limitations of traditional antivenom production processes","authors":"Nicolás Berardo Blanch , Diego Ignacio Olivero , Christian Leandro Macoretta , Oscar Pérez , Matías Fingermann","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101863","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101863","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Since their introduction over a century ago, antivenoms have played a central role in Public Health, especially in the world's least developed regions. They are, in most cases, the only effective treatment for envenomation accidents by poisonous animals. A big proportion of currently available antivenoms are based on F(ab’)<sub>2</sub> immunoglobulin fragments, produced from hyperimmune equine plasma, following slightly modified protocols developed several decades ago. These protocols show severe limitations for processing starting materials with high lipid contents. In this work, we propose minor modifications to these traditional procedures, based on the addition of octanoic acid, that significantly increase their lipid removal capacities. The method designed for use at the final stages showed reductions of 85–98 % and 64–99 % in cholesterol and phosphatidylcholines, respectively. An alternative, intended for use at the initial stages of the process, improved lipid removal capacity in three out of four independent hyperimmune equine plasmas assayed. Notably, a significant reduction in oligomeric F(ab’)<sub>2</sub> species was also observed in all octanoic acid-treated samples. Thus, the methodologies developed and optimised in this work present simple and affordable alternatives to overcome lipid removal limitations of traditional antivenom-producing protocols.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"92 ","pages":"Article 101863"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145410840","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alum adjuvants do not induce Th1 responses with killed microorganisms, although Th1 responses are crucial for defending against intracellular microbes. Chlorogenic acid (CGA) can shift immune responses from Th2 toward Th1. This study assessed the benefits of combining CGA with alum on cellular and humoral immunity following immunization with a heat-killed preparation of Salmonella typhimurium (HKST). Male Balb/c mice received two doses of the HKST vaccine, with or without alum, CGA, or both, administered two weeks apart. Immune responses and protection against S. typhimurium were evaluated two weeks after the final dose.The alum and CGA combination enhanced the HKST vaccine's ability to stimulate lymphocyte proliferation, delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions, and antibody titers, and alter the ratio of IgG2a/IgG in favor of IgG2a. These findings correlated with a shift toward a Th1 immune response and improved protective immunity against S. typhimurium. Also, the group receiving the combined adjuvant had a longer survival rate following exposure to the acute dose of S. typhimurium and had a lower bacterial load in the liver when exposed to the subacute dose of S. typhimurium compared to other immunization protocols. Overall,the combined alum and CGA significantly boosted cellular and humoral immunity following HKST immunization.
{"title":"Adjuvant Synergy: Alum and chlorogenic acid enhance Th1 responses and survival in a Salmonella typhimurium challenge model","authors":"Mahtab Pourkamalzadeh, Seyyed Meysam Abtahi Froushani, Abdolgaffar Ownagh","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101864","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101864","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Alum adjuvants do not induce Th1 responses with killed microorganisms, although Th1 responses are crucial for defending against intracellular microbes. Chlorogenic acid (CGA) can shift immune responses from Th2 toward Th1. This study assessed the benefits of combining CGA with alum on cellular and humoral immunity following immunization with a heat-killed preparation of <em>Salmonella typhimurium</em> (HKST). Male Balb/c mice received two doses of the HKST vaccine, with or without alum, CGA, or both, administered two weeks apart. Immune responses and protection against <em>S. typhimurium</em> were evaluated two weeks after the final dose.The alum and CGA combination enhanced the HKST vaccine's ability to stimulate lymphocyte proliferation, delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions, and antibody titers, and alter the ratio of IgG2a/IgG in favor of IgG2a. These findings correlated with a shift toward a Th1 immune response and improved protective immunity against <em>S. typhimurium</em>. Also, the group receiving the combined adjuvant had a longer survival rate following exposure to the acute dose of <em>S. typhimurium</em> and had a lower bacterial load in the liver when exposed to the subacute dose of <em>S. typhimurium</em> compared to other immunization protocols. Overall,the combined alum and CGA significantly boosted cellular and humoral immunity following HKST immunization.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"92 ","pages":"Article 101864"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145571663","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01DOI: 10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101861
Silvia M. Becerra-Bayona , Víctor Alfonso Solarte , Juan Dario Alviar Rueda , Claudia L. Sossa , Martha L. Arango-Rodríguez
{"title":"Corrigendum to “Effect of biomolecules derived from human platelet-rich plasma on the ex vivo expansion of human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells for clinical applications” [Biologicals 75 (2022) 37–48]","authors":"Silvia M. Becerra-Bayona , Víctor Alfonso Solarte , Juan Dario Alviar Rueda , Claudia L. Sossa\u2028 , Martha L. Arango-Rodríguez","doi":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101861","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.biologicals.2025.101861","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":55369,"journal":{"name":"Biologicals","volume":"92 ","pages":"Article 101861"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145056330","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}