Building on more than decade of work, University of Queensland researchers have developed the beginnings of a potential “plug-and-play” system to prevent mosquito-borne diseases in humans.

The ISVac platform, which has been demonstrated in animals, has been developed by associate professor Jody Peters, Dr Henry de Malmanche and Dr Jessica Harrison.

Peters said since her team’s discovery of a mosquito-specific virus, they had been able to genetically engineer it to generate virus particles that did not infect humans or animals.

“These particles have been used as vaccines against Japanese encephalitis virus in pigs and West Nile virus in crocodiles,” Peters said.

The next stage is a big leap, as the team develops a potential tool to protect humans against emerging mosquito-borne diseases.

Proboxis Biotechnology, a startup established with support from UQ’s commercialisation company UniQuest, will continue the work on ISVac to help bring it closer to clinical development.

If successful, the platform could support developing more vaccines, including for dengue, Zika, yellow fever and West Nile virus.

With changing climates meaning mosquitoes are becoming an issue in new regions, Peters said the insects posed a serious and growing public-health threat.

“Japanese encephalitis, which can cause severe neurological illness, lifelong disability and death, wasn’t seen in Australia until 2022,” she said.

“This highlights the need for both continued investment in preparedness, so vaccines can be mobilised quickly, and the development of new vaccine technologies.”

Proboxis Biotechnology has secured $1.5 million in funding through the inaugural round of Biointelect Venturer. It already has a promising vaccine candidate for Japanese encephalitis virus in the works.

Biointelect Venturer is a new national virtual incubator for vaccine and infectious disease innovation. It is funded by the federal government’s Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) through the 2024 BioMedTech Incubator Grant Opportunity.

De Malmanche, a biotechnologist, said the innovative approach also had the potential to be highly scalable.

“This funding will support manufacturing development, regulatory readiness and commercial planning to help move the technology towards clinical development,” he said.

De Malmanche said a homegrown invention that could be manufactured in Australia to protect the population also increased the nation’s sovereign capabilities.

Biointelect CEO Leah Goodman said Biointelect Venturer’s deep expertise in development and commercialisation strategy would support innovators to progress from promising science to investment-ready ventures.

“By combining targeted funding with practical, hands-on support and access to national and international networks, Biointelect Venturer is helping strengthen Australia’s capability to translate infectious disease innovations into products with real public health impact,” Goodman said.