Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation pursuing development of vaccine for equine herpesvirus

The Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation has issued a request for proposals to research the development of a vaccine against equine herpesvirus, the highly contagious disease that annually disrupts shipping and training schedules across the U.S.

The foundation, which awards grants for research proposals annually, said that it had received $2 million in donations from Dr. John Ballantyne, who is a horse owner, and the North Dakota-based Fargo-Moorhead Area Foundation to fund the research into a potential vaccine. Researchers are being asked to focus on the development of a nucleic acid-based vaccine, or one that uses DNA or RNA from the virus to stimulate an immune response.

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Equine herpesvirus can be fatal, and it is swiftly passed from one horse to another in close confines. Outbreaks among the Thoroughbred population usually occur in the winter, though they can arise at any time of year. Due to quarantine protocols, an outbreak in a barn can lead to the closure of entire backsides at racetracks.

“As a horse owner with a biotechnology background, I recognize the danger of EHV and see the potential for nucleic acid-based vaccines for combating this disease,” said Ballantyne, in a statement issued by the research foundation.

Proposals are due October 1, 2022, the foundation said. The foundation added that research into an EHV vaccine was anticipated to last three or four years and include “possible multiple projects.”