Recombinant feline interferon omega

{{Short description|Veterinary medication}}

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| tradename = Virbagen Omega, Intercat, Virbac

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| ATCvet = yes

| ATC_prefix = L03

| ATC_suffix = AB90

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| legal_status = Approved in JP, AU/NZ, MX, CN

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| CAS_number = 1253735-49-7

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{{Infobox nonhuman protein

|Name=Interferon alpha "omega-like"

|Organism=Felis catus

|UniProt=P35849

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Recombinant feline interferon omega (RFeIFN-ω), sold under the brand name Virbagen Omega among others, is a recombinant version of a cat interferon alpha. It is used to treat a range of viral diseases in cats and dogs, including canine parvovirus, feline leukemia virus (FeLV), and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) in many countries. It is approved to be used by injection under the skin. RFeIFN-ω is produced in silkworm larvae using a baculovirus vector.{{cite journal | vauthors = Li SF, Zhao FR, Shao JJ, Xie YL, Chang HY, Zhang YG | title = Interferon-omega: Current status in clinical applications | journal = International Immunopharmacology | volume = 52 | pages = 253–260 | date = November 2017 | pmid = 28957693 | pmc = 7106160 | doi = 10.1016/j.intimp.2017.08.028 }}

Side effects include hyperthermia and decrease in white blood cell count. These effects tend to be mild and transient. It is a immunostimulant in the interferon family.{{cite web |last1=EMEA |title=Scientific Discussion: Virbagen Omega, INN-interferon |url=https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/scientific-discussion/virbagen-omega-epar-scientific-discussion_en.pdf |website=ema.europa.eu |date=2004}}

The feline interferon "omega" gene was first cloned in 1992.{{cite journal | vauthors = Nakamura N, Sudo T, Matsuda S, Yanai A | title = Molecular cloning of feline interferon cDNA by direct expression | journal = Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry | volume = 56 | issue = 2 | pages = 211–4 | date = February 1992 | pmid = 1377975 | doi = 10.1271/bbb.56.211 | doi-access = }}; {{GenBank|E02521}} It was first produced in silkworms by Ueda and coworkers in 1993. The protein is around 60% identical to human alpha interferons, but the Ueda team deemed it an "omega-type" interferon due to some motifs.{{cite journal | vauthors = Ueda Y, Sakurai T, Kasama K, Satoh Y, Atsumi K, Hanawa S, Uchino T, Yanai A | display-authors = 6 | title = Pharmacokinetic properties of recombinant feline interferon and its stimulatory effect on 2',5'-oligoadenylate synthetase activity in the cat | journal = The Journal of Veterinary Medical Science | volume = 55 | issue = 1 | pages = 1–6 | date = February 1993 | pmid = 7681698 | doi = 10.1292/jvms.55.1 | doi-access = free }}; {{GenBank|S62636}} Phylogenic analysis in 2007 puts it as an alpha-type interferon.{{cite journal | vauthors = Yang LM, Xue QH, Sun L, Zhu YP, Liu WJ | title = Cloning and characterization of a novel feline IFN-omega | journal = Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research | volume = 27 | issue = 2 | pages = 119–27 | date = February 2007 | pmid = 17316139 | doi = 10.1089/jir.2006.0094 }}