Develop a feedable multivalent vaccine to protect poultry from highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)

The Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service awarded a $2,489,320 cooperative agreement to The Research Foundation For The State University Of New York (operating as SUNY at Binghamton) on February 2, 2026, to develop a feedable multivalent vaccine protecting poultry from highly pathogenic avian influenza.

The recipient will formulate a trivalent yeast-based vaccine displaying hemagglutinin from three antigenically distinct H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4B strains on yeast surface protein, eliciting broad immune protection against both homologous and heterologous infection. Virus challenge experiments will be conducted at a BSL3+ animal study facility at Pennsylvania State University to assess vaccine efficacy in vaccinated chickens exposed to H5N1. The recipient will also develop an assay differentiating vaccinated birds from naturally infected ones to support adoption by U.S. poultry farms. The yeast platform offers advantages for industry-wide implementation: feedable formulation requires no specialized equipment for mass vaccination, low production cost, and room-temperature stability enabling scalability and rapid updates in response to emerging pandemic threats.

Work is performed in New York under the federal grant program Plant and Animal Disease, Pest Control, and Animal Care (CFDA 10.025). The period of performance runs through February 1, 2029. The cooperative agreement supports the program's mission to protect U.S. agriculture from economically injurious animal diseases and ensure the safety of veterinary biologics.

The vaccine will be formulated using yeast surface protein display technology developed in the PI's laboratory. By displaying hemagglutinin (HA) from circulating HPAI H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4B virus on the yeast surface, the vaccine effectively presents viral antigens to the host immune system, eliciting a protective immune response against both homologous and heterologous infection, as demonstrated in our recent study. Yeast is selected as the vaccine platform due to its established benefits for poultry health. Widely used in the poultry industry to enhance immunity and flock health, using yeast to develop vaccines offer unique advantages. To achieve broad and long-lasting protection, three antigenically distinct H5N1 viral has will be incorporated into a trivalent yeast vaccine formulation. Virus challenging experiments will be performed at a BSL3+ animal study facility at pennsylvania state university (penn state). Vaccinated chickens will be exposed to homologous and heterologous H5N1 to assess if the vaccine offers broad and long-lasting protection of birds from HPAI. More circulating viruses will be tested as needed. Feedable yeast vaccine represents a paradigm shift in poultry immunization, enabling mass vaccination without specialized equipment. These vaccines are scalable, cost-effective, and can be transported and stored at room temperature-highly desired traits for industry-wide adoption. An assay will be developed to differentiate vaccinated birds from naturally infected ones, facilitating the adoption of these vaccines by poultry farms in the U.S. Additionally, the vaccine can be quickly updated in response to emerging pandemic threats. Low production cost and room-temperature stability are another two novel features appearing for large-scale implementation by the poultry industry. Broad adoption could significantly mitigate bird flu outbreaks, safeguard nation's food and biosecurity, and reduce transmission risks to dairy cattle and humans, ultimately saving lives.