MOSCOW, January 19 (Sputnik) — The United States hopes to create a vaccine against Ebola using the blood plasma of cattle genetically engineered with human DNA, the head of the company that develops the cattle said Monday.
The genetically modified cattle are able to produce human antibodies after cloning and subsequent vaccinations against a number of viruses, including Ebola, NBC News reported.
"These animals [cows] produce very high levels of human antibody," Eddie Sullivan, the head of SAB Biotherapeutics told NBC News.
17 January 2015, 08:26 GMT
"From these animals, we can collect 30 to 60 liters of plasma each month," Sullivan said. "That translates into something between 500 to 1,000 human doses per month per animal."
The research is being carried out by SAB Biotherapeutics in partnership with the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID).
The Ebola vaccine trial is currently underway on a farm near Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in the United States.
