Sarawak infectious disease centre joins UK-backed African swine fever research project
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Sarawak’s contribution to a new African swine fever research partnership will centre on virus data and local veterinary experience, rather than an announced farm treatment or finished vaccine.
The Sarawak Infectious Disease Centre (SIDC) said on October 8 that it is joining a £3.4 million project led by the University of Sheffield. The partnership also includes the University of Liverpool and Thailand’s National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, with SIDC working alongside Sarawak’s Veterinary Services Department.
The researchers aim to understand the virus’s genetic diversity, evolution and spread. Whole-genome sequencing is intended to help build SIDC’s role as a regional genomic reference centre and produce evidence useful to farmers and veterinary authorities.
UK Research and Innovation’s October 7 funding announcement independently lists the Sheffield-led African swine fever project among 18 new research and innovation projects. The £3.4 million figure is the partnership’s reported project grant, not an allocation confirmed wholly for SIDC.
For Sarawak’s pig-farming sector, the local link is participation in generating and interpreting evidence about the virus. The announcement sets out research goals; it does not establish that a new vaccine, treatment or control service is ready for farmers to use.
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