Vaccine means
herd today,
alive tomorrow
M.E.N. attempts to revive scholars
by CHARLES HARPSTER
Nebraskan Staff Writer
"For 18 months it was really
frustrating. We could watch
calf scours wipe out 200 calves
from a herd in a week, but we
couldn't infect them with it in
the lab."
Dr. C. A. Mebus described
the problem that faced his
research team at the Universi
ty Department of Veterinary
Science before a breakthrough
came in the search for a calf
scours vaccine. This vaccine
may soon be marketed nationwide.
The disease has been
studied since the first of the
century, he said, bat no one
could reproduce It consistently
in the lab. Treatments that
were successful in the past are
now ineffective because cattle
have built up a resistance,
Mebus said.
A herd infected by calf
scours may lose up to 50 per
cent of its new-born calves.
Those that do not die from the
disease never fully recover,
Mebus said, resulting In a 50- to
75-pound decrease in adult
weight
Repeated injections of in
fected material into healthy
calves failed to produce the
disease in the lab, he said. The
frustration came because
calves were infected so easily
in the field.
A first breakthrough came
when the infected material was
Injected into a ealFi small in
testine through a tube, preven
ting the material from being
altered by stomach adds. The
calf soon became infected with
the disease, clearing the way
for research into the cause.
Once the disease was pro
duced consistently in the lab, a
second breakthrough came
for the first time, the specific
virus causing the disease was
isolated.
The next step, Mebus said,
was to grow the virus in a series
of cell cultures until a weaken
ed form, suitable for inocula
tion, was the result He added
that the vaccine works
similarly to polio or small pox
vaccine.
The problem Bad grown so
serious in Nebraska that the
Stock Growers Association and
the Sandhills Cattle Association
went to the State Department
of Agriculture for help. In the
spring of 1966, Mebus said, the
research began. Money came
from the Department of
Agriculture and the University
budget.
The research was expensive
because the 70 to 100 calves
used each year cost up to $60
each. Many had to be taken by
Caesarian section to keep the
animal uninfected. Before the
tests were completed, the cost
per calf was about $600, he
said.
Norden Laboratories of Lin
coln should have the vaccine on
the market by 1973, according
to Dr. Ed McConnell, vice
president of the lab's
marketing. Time-consuming
safety and effectiveness tests
must be run in order to meet
standards of the U.S. Depart
ment of Agriculture, he said.
"It mast have a realistic cost
so cattlemen will be able to buy
it Otherwise, it wont do us any
Koo d to produce it," McConnell
said.
He called the discovery a
"very exciting breakthrough,
and said the vaccine has
"much potential" in solving the
worldwide problem of calf
scours.
FILM BEING
AN UHPACKAGED PROGRAM
OF HAND-PICKED FILMS
DECEMBER 5, 7 AND 9 PJVU
SHELDON GALLERY $1.
SPONSORED BY KESRASXA UN!0?l
COLLECTIONS
at
High Chaparral
Thursday fibre Saturday
St Draft Thursday Night 8-9
Ma Epsflon Nu, (M.E.N.)
men's education honorary is
currently attempting to re
establish a full tuition
scholarship for an outstanding
high school senior.
The scholarship which goes
to a person planning to attend
the University's teaching col
lege was not awarded last year
due to a lack of Interest and
funds, said Bob Smallfoot,
president of the group.
Applicants are recommended
by the Office of Scholarships
and Financial Aids and chosen
on the basis of an essay written
for the competition.
The Henzilek Award, an an
nual honor given . to the
outstanding male teacher in the
state, will be presented at the
groups spring banquet, said
Smallfoot The winner is chosen
from nominations made by the
student bodies of public schools
across the state.
Another project of the
group, designed to be of benefit
to its members is Teaching
Trips. Members journey to an
area school and take over
classes for a day.
"We feel that this gives our
members a chance to decide if
they really want to teach by
giving them an opportunity to
actually experience teaching
before graduation," said
Smallfoot
Membership requirements
for Mu Epsilon Nq include
being a sophomore or above,
enrolled In teachers college
with a 2.75 or above grade
average.
East Campus
choir carols
The East Campus Choir will
present a concert of Christmas
carols on Sunday, December 6
at 2:30 p.m. in the East
Campus activities b u 1 1 di n g .
The choir is composed of
students from the Colleges of
Agriculture and Home
economics.
v ) mpAutum .mis t imstmas ( m
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Bridal Sets
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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4 1970
THE NEBRASKAN
PAGE
5
