SAB
Biotheraputics of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has cloned cattle to produce milk
that works as a vaccine against diseases such as influenza, Ebola and Zika
viruses.
The
company has built barns to house the cattle that are producing milk with
antibodies.
The
cows are injected with a vaccine and produce antibodies to fight disease.
By
taking the plasma from their blood and sterilizing it in a lab, the antibodies
could be used in humans.
The
company is working toward the first clinical trials on influenza, and if
approved, SAB’s cattle are ready to produce the treatment.
The
new facility could make enough of the antibody to meet worldwide demand, using
just 20% of its capacity.
SAB
just completed its first trial in humans for treating MERS or Middle East
Respiratory Syndrome. The results showed that the cow-made antibodies worked
just like human antibodies to treat the disease.
SAB
will start by moving its 35 cows that now live at the Trans Ova Genetics
facility across the border in Iowa.
Those
cows were implanted with embryos the day after the groundbreaking, preparing to
create the next generation of antibody-producing cows.
