In August, the HERB CIIDIR team welcomed a new team to our office and Laboratory, the Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory (ARRL). Originally based across Ryrie St, they have now moved on level 3 within the CIIDIR team.
ARRL’s multidisciplinary team includes four main projects:
Q fever human vaccine
The ARRL in conjunction with the Elizabeth Macarthur Research Institute and Deakin University is testing a chemically modified polysaccharide vaccine in guinea pigs. It is anticipated that the vaccine will outperform the current vaccine (Qvax) and will proceed to human clinical trials.
Coxiella burnetii genome study
A number of Australian, human C. burnetii isolates are being sequenced and compared to other isolates from around the world. We are evaluating the relatedness and uniqueness of the Australian isolates in order to characterise elements that may be exploited for further research.
Unlocking the potential of MicroRNA biomarkers to diagnose vector-borne diseases
miRNAs have recently emerged as promising biomarkers for diagnosing and prognosing various infectious diseases, including Vector Borne Diseases. These small non-coding RNA molecules are rapidly released into the bloodstream upon infection, making them ideal candidates for disease detection. We will be looking at patient blood to see if there a unique markers for future diagnostic assays.
Goat Vaccine Team
Coxiella burnetii is the causative agent of Q fever. After farm workers experienced a Q fever outbreak, a local Goat Dairy Farm engaged the ARRL to develop an Autogenous Goat Vaccine. When dairy goats are infected they can produce less milk, experience general malaise, abortion or still births while shedding large quantities of bacteria at birth, continuing the infection cycle. With no animal vaccine available in Australia, the team have produced a GMP quality vaccine and are currently awaiting a permit from the regulatory authorities before delivering the vaccine in a systematic manner across time focusing on newly introduced animals as the long term strategy for eradication.