Roadmap for the development of candidate vaccines for FMD

What are we trying to achieve and why? What is the problem we are trying to solve?

To establish how FMDV result in persistent infection and investigate persistent infection and carriers, and their role in disease transmission.

What are the scientific and technological challenges (knowledge gaps needing to be addressed)?

• Define immune mechanisms related to persistence and innate immunity activation
• Define sites of persistence
• Demonstrate if persistence is a dead-end infection or find definitive evidence of the role of persistent infection and carriers in FMD perpetuation in natural environments

What approaches could/should be taken to address the research question?

Proteomic approaches in persistent /not persistent cells would allow to detect specific markers of persistence

What else needs to be done before we can solve this need?

• Understand the mechanisms of persistence
• The pathogen and host factors that contribute to FMDV persistence are currently not understood

Existing knowledge including successes and failures

Some mechanisms of persistence at the cellular level (in the soft palate) begin to be understood.