10 Jan 2023
New survey will help with development of RaDiCal system, which could provide results in as little as 30 minutes.
Allister Webb
Job Title
Image © Kara / Adobe Stock
Vets are being encouraged to share their experiences of diagnosing and treating calf pneumonia as part of the development of a new lateral flow test for the disease.
Scientists hope to have a working version of the RaDiCal test ready by this autumn, though it is unlikely to be commercially available for several years after that.
But they believe it could provide results in as little as 30 minutes, potentially reducing the spread of infection and associated costs to the farming industry.
Project lead Mark Chambers, Professor of Microbiology and Disease Intervention at the University of Surrey, said: “We are developing a test that can be used on farm, cow-side.”
Calf pneumonia causes inflammation of the lungs and can trigger irreversible damage, leading to slaughter. The disease is estimated to cost the UK cattle industry up to £50 million a year.
The RaDiCal test is being developed by a consortium led by the Surrey vet school, which also includes academics from the universities of Cardiff and Glasgow, together with Global Access Diagnostics (GADx) and Westpoint Farm Vets.
Tim Potter, Westpoint’s senior clinical director, said calf pneumonia is among the main factors that drive antimicrobial usage on farms and they hope the system will enable more targeted treatments to be administered.
He added: “Enabling rapid on-farm detection of the pathogens responsible for pneumonia at the time of an outbreak will speed up the implementation of targeted control measures and enable vets to provide more evidence-based advice.”
As part of the work, which is being funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), an anonymous online survey has been opened to enable vets to share their experiences of using diagnostic tests and managing the disease.
The RaDiCal system is intended to enable vets to upload samples for testing onto a portable device while on the farm.
Professor Chambers said their anticipated timescale for results compared to at least 24 hours for other test formats, such as culture or PCR.
Although the group aims to have developed a working test by September of this year, a commercially available version is not currently expected to be available until the end of 2028, to enable sufficient time for validation, manufacturing and promotion.
Prof Chambers added: “We are delighted to be leading the RaDiCal project and will be using our experience in veterinary infectious diseases and test development within an exciting consortium of other academics and representatives from industry, large animal veterinary practice, and farmers themselves at the sharp end of managing calf pneumonia.
“Through this close partnership and ongoing consultation, we shall ensure we develop a test that meets the needs of the cattle industry.”
Alison Wakeham, GADx’s head of agriculture and animal health, said: “GADx’s expertise in lateral flow technology allows us to support a variety of disease areas.
“By applying our platform within the livestock industry, we are glad to be able to help improve disease management for one of the most significant diseases affecting calves.
“Working alongside other experts in this field through the consortium and with the support of BBSRC funding, we are looking forward to progressing the project and bringing the transformative test to market.
“Being able to accurately diagnose and treat early in the disease cycle is critical to prevent spread and control outbreaks.”
Abi Reader, a Glamorgan-based farmer and chair of the NFU Cymru milk board, added: “Calf pneumonia puts an enormous burden on UK dairy farmers, causing increased veterinary costs and farming losses.
“RaDiCal will help reduce this impact and support farmers by enabling early intervention and improved calf welfare.”
Vets can take part in the survey by visiting https://cardiff.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/calfrapidtest
The survey is also available in Welsh via https://cardiff.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/prawfcyflym
