Avian poxvirus vectors represent promising platforms for the generation of polyvalent vaccines. Fowlpox virus-vectored vaccines have been largely used but pre-existing immunity to FWPV may prevent the development of robust immune responses against heterologous antigens. To circumvent this problem, in the present project we propose to develop two antigenically distinct avipox viruses, condorpox (CDPV) and/or apapanepox (APPV), as vaccine delivery platforms for use in poultry. For this, we will target Infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) as our model pathogen/disease to explore the potential of CDPV and/or APPV as vaccine delivery vectors. ILTV Brazilian field strains were previously obtained by Laboratory of Animal Virology at IB-UNICAMP.

The overall goal of this project is to develop and evaluate the potential of novel APVs as a viral vector for vaccine delivery in poultry, and to assess their efficacy against ILTV virus challenge.