In the spotlight

Vaccines against RS virus in infants and calves

In the Netherlands, some two thousand young children are hospitalised each year with a pulmonary infection caused by the RS virus. Globally, the RS virus is second only to malaria as the leading cause of infant mortality. A genetically similar bovine virus shows a comparable pathology in calves. Wageningen researchers have set up an infection model that is utilised in developing a safe, effective vaccine for children and calves.