Large-scale bovine vaccine study reveals the role of genetics in immune response

Black angus cows - In largest personalized immunogenetics study to date, computer scientist Yana Safonova discovers the DNA sequences that control vaccine response in cows, opening the door for further immunogenetics research in humans Vaccines are a critical tool in the protection of humans and animals against pathogens, but a major challenge for vaccine development is understanding why vaccines work better for some individuals than others. To answer this question, a research team led by Yana Safonova , assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering, studied black angus cows and their varying responses to the Bovine Respiratory Disease, or BRD, vaccine. The team's findings were recently published in the journal Genome Research . BRD is the leading cause of natural death for cows and costs the cattle industry an estimated $900 million a year. Medication is expensive, so cattle producers rely on vaccinations to mitigate the problem. Conducting research for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Safonova and researchers from the University of California, San Diego sought to understand how the unique genetic structure of cows and other bovine animals such as bison, buffalo, and antelopes were creating antibodies from the BRD vaccine. A large-scale study of human immunogenetics could aid in understanding vaccine response variations ahead of the next pandemic.