BactiVac at IVIS 2025 - Challenges in Developing Veterinary Bacterial Vaccines

 

On 11 August 2025, BactiVac partnered with IVIS to deliver a pre-symposium workshop on “Challenges in Developing Bacterial Vaccines for Veterinary Infections.” The session was opened by BactiVac Director Adam Cunningham, with chairs and speakers including Co-Director Constantino López-Macías, board members Peter Borriello, Mark Stevens, and Jeremy Salt, and invited guests Francesca Martelli, Tom McNally, and Elise Schieck, who brought their expertise to the discussions. With over 120 delegates attending the workshop and more than 300 participants at main IVIS conference in person, the event was an important opportunity to exchange ideas, build collaborations, and address barriers to developing effective veterinary vaccines.

See the meeting highlights video here:

The BactiVac workshop built on a previous session led by Gary Entrican and Jayne Hope at IVIS 2023, which examined the opportunities and challenges of adopting novel platform technologies for veterinary bacterial vaccines. At IVIS 2025, the workshop aimed to explore why progress in bacterial vaccine development is so difficult, despite the urgent need for new tools to protect animal health. Bacterial zoonoses exert significant societal and economic costs, including foodborne illness and direct contact of humans with infected animals. Animal hosts of zoonotic pathogens can suffer the same diseases observed in humans, providing further motivation to control infections as well as tractable models to understand the basis of pathogenesis and protection. While detailed knowledge exists on pathogen genomes and virulence factors, practical and financial barriers, such as the high cost of research, lack of reliable correlates of vaccine success, and limited incentives for deployment, continue to slow down vaccine development.

To discuss these challenges, Salmonella was presented as a cross-cutting example, relevant to both animals and humans, and provided a basis for discussion on pathogenesis, antigen identification, and vaccine strategies. E. coli O157 was highlighted as a pathogen of limited veterinary relevance but one of major concern for human health. The programme concluded with Mycoplasma infections, which are directly relevant to animal health and remain a significant challenge for livestock production.

 The workshop underlined the vital role of immunologists in overcoming scientific and practical hurdles and in driving innovation in veterinary vaccine development. By bringing together experts across diverse disciplines, the session helped strengthen collaborations and set the stage for progress in tackling bacterial infections that threaten both animal and human health.

 BactiVac would like to thank the IVIS organising committee for the opportunity to host this workshop as part of the symposium. We are also grateful to our board members and invited speakers for sharing their expertise, and to all participants whose engagement and contributions made the discussions so valuable. The success of this session reflects the strength of the bacterial vaccine community and our shared commitment to advancing veterinary vaccine research.

For all queries, please contact the BactiVac Administration Team: bactivac@contacts.bham.ac.uk