The reproductive performance of sows after PRRS vaccination depends on stage of gestation

In order to minimize the effects of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) on stillbirth, mummification, and neonatal mortality in swine herds, many producers have vaccinated their herds using a modified-live virus vaccine. The purpose of this study was to determine the association of the PRRS modified-live vaccine and reproductive performance by stage of gestation when the vaccine was administered. A total of 47 swine herds from Ontario and Manitoba, Canada, and from the mid-western USA were included in the study. Participating farms had vaccinated all of their sows at one point in time when they used the vaccine for the first time. The reproductive performance of sows that farrowed in the year prior to use of the vaccine was compared to that of sows vaccinated in each of five stages of gestation and in the gestation that followed the initial use of the vaccine. Sows vaccinated at any time during gestation had a reduced number of pigs born alive, a reduced number of pigs weaned per litter, and increased number of stillborn pigs and an increased number of mummified pigs compared to the sows that farrowed prior to use of the vaccine. The largest association was seen in sows that were vaccinated in the last four weeks of gestation. The largest losses were observed in those herds that were vaccinated concurrently with the initial PRRS herd outbreak. These results suggest that the modified-live vaccine should only be administered to non-gestating sows.     

Shedding of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus in mammary gland secretions of sows.

OBJECTIVE: To document shedding of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus in mammary gland secretions of experimentally inoculated sows, to evaluate effects of vaccination during gestation on virus shedding during the subsequent lactation, and to evaluate shedding of PRRS virus in milk of sows in commercial herds. ANIMALS: 6 sows seronegative for PRRS virus were used for experiment 1, and 2 sows were retained for experiment 2. For experiment 3, 202 sows in commercial herds were used. PROCEDURE: In experiment 1, 2 sows were inoculated with PRRS virus, 2 sows were vaccinated with modified-live PRRS virus vaccine, and 2 sows served as control pigs. Mammary gland secretions were assayed for PRRS virus. In experiment 2, pregnant vaccinated sows from experiment 1 were vaccinated with another modified-live PRRS virus vaccine. Mammary gland secretions were assayed in the same manner as for experiment 1. For experiment 3, milk collected from 202 sows in commercial herds was assayed for PRRS virus. RESULTS: In experiment 1, PRRS virus was detected in mammary gland secretions of both vaccinated and 1 of 2 virus-inoculated sows. In experiment 2, virus was not detected in samples from either vaccinated sow. In experiment 3, all samples yielded negative results. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Na?ve sows inoculated late in gestation shed PRRS virus in mammary secretions. Previous vaccination appeared to prevent shedding during the subsequent lactation. Results for samples obtained from sows in commercial herds suggested that virus shedding in mammary gland secretions of such sows is uncommon.     

Sow performance in an endemically porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS)-infected farm after sow vaccination with an attenuated PRRS vaccine

The objective of this field study was to evaluate in an endemically porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus-infected farm the reproductive performance of sows after their vaccination with a PRRS attenuated vaccine. In a farrow-to-finish pig farm with history of endemic PRRS virus infection, a total of 200 gilts and sows were used. They were divided in 2 groups of 100 animals. The first group was used as untreated controls, while the animals of the second group were vaccinated against PRRS virus using the attenuated Porcilis PRRS vaccine (Intervet International, The Netherlands) based on European strain. All health and reproductive parameters were recorded from the time of vaccination up to next weaning. No adverse systemic or local reactions or side effects relative to vaccination were noted. Compared to controls, vaccinated sows showed significantly improved farrowing rate (89% versus 78%) and a tendency for fewer returns to oestrus, particularly those at irregular intervals. Fewer sows farrowed prematurely and showed post-partum dysgalactia syndrome, but more live pigs were born and weaned in each litter after vaccination. It was concluded that vaccination of sows with Porcilis PRRS attenuated vaccine in farms with endemic PRRSV infection has beneficial effects on their health and fertility.     

Performance of fattening pigs in a farm infected with both porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus and porcine circovirus type 2 following sow and piglet vaccination with an attenuated PRRS vaccine

The purpose of the study was to investigate whether, on farms with both post-weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), the PRRS vaccination of sows and their fattening pigs protects against these syndromes. In a farrow-to-finish pig farm with a history of PRRS and PMWS, 200 gilts and sows were allocated to one of two groups of equal size. The first group (C-sow group) was used as untreated controls, while the animals of the second group (V-sow group) were vaccinated with live Porcilis PRRS vaccine. At the next weaning, all piglets of half the sows of the C sow group were vaccinated once at 35 days of age with the vaccine (CV group), while the offspring of the other half of the unvaccinated sows were left unvaccinated (CC group). Similarly, the offspring of half the sows of the V sow group were vaccinated (VV group), while those of the other half of the vaccinated sows were left unvaccinated (VC group). No significant differences in morbidity were observed between the groups during the nursery and finishing phases, while morbidity in the growers was significantly reduced in the CV- and VV-groups (P < 0.05). Growers' mortality was significantly reduced after piglet vaccination when compared with unvaccinated pigs of unvaccinated dams (P < 0.05). Average daily gain and feed conversion ratio were significantly improved in vaccinated piglets compared with those in the unvaccinated groups (P < 0.05).     

Associations ofAscaris suum and Oesophagostomum spp. infections of sows with management factors in 83 Danish sow herds

Associations of the occurrence of Ascaris suum and Oesophagostomum spp. in sows with herd management factors were examined using logistic-binomial regression. The information used was from 11 to 78 sows sampled from each of 83 breeding herds (2961 sows in total) and examined for eggs per gram of faeces (EPG). A sow excreting at least 20 EPG was defined as ‘infected’. Management factors of the study herds were recorded using a questionnaire. A total of 263 sows from 50 herds (8.9% of sows) and 375 sows from 20 herds (12.7% of sows) were infected with A. suum and Oesophagostomum spp., respectively. For A. suum, sows from herds with more than 85 sows had significantly higher odds of being infected compared with those from 30 to 85 sows (P < 0.05). When bedding was provided for sows, the odds of A. suum infection was 5.4 compared with sows from herds in which bedding was not provided (P < 0.05). For Oesophagostomum spp., sows from herds with different specific pathogen free status had about one tenth the odds of being infected compared with those from conventional herds (P < 0.05). Sows that had been treated with anthelmintics had very low odds of being infected with Oesophagostomum spp. compared with those that were not treated (P < 0.05). The effects of these management factors in both final models did not differ when the definition of an ‘infected’ sow was changed. The present results suggest the importance of disposal of bedding material from pens in reducing the prevalence of A. suum in larger sow herds. Anthelmintic treatment is important in reducing the prevalence of Oesophagostomum spp. infection of sows.     

Risk factors for clinical signs of PMWS and PDNS in pigs in The Netherlands: a case-control study

Potential risk factors for clinical signs of post-weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) and porcine dermatitis and nephropathy syndrome (PDNS) in pigs in the Netherlands were investigated in a matched case-control study using a questionnaire (personal interview). Eighty-two pig farmers were questioned about management, hygiene, husbandry systems, disease history, and preventive health care. In this study, 30 pig herds with (cases) and 30 pig herds without (controls) characteristic clinical signs of PMWS were compared. For PDNS, 11 pig herds with (cases) and II pig herds without (controls) characteristic clinical signs of PDNS were compared. Univariate analysis (P < 0.10) showed that the following occurred relatively more often in the PMWS case herds than in the control herds: 1) clinical signs of PDNS, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), porcine parvovirus (PPV) infections, meningitis, coccidiosis, and pre-weaning diarrhoea observed by the farmer; 2) vaccination against PRRS and mycoplasma; 3) non-optimal climatic conditions in the nursery rooms, a large variation in weaning age, a high occurrence of cross-fostering of piglets, a large number of sows with lactation problems, poor colostrum intake by piglets; and 4) (historical) use of breeding stock (including semen for artificial insemination) of Anglo-Saxon origin. In the final multivariate statistical model, one variable remained significantly associated with PMWS case herds, namely, the presence of clinical signs of PRRS (and/or the associated use of vaccination against PRRS). It should be noted that in almost all cases animals were vaccinated against PRRS because of clinical signs of PRRS that appeared a few months after the first occurrence of clinical signs of PMWS. This excludes PRRS vaccination as a primary factor in causing PMWS. Analysis of the PDNS case-control data showed comparable results with those of the PMWS study. In the final statistical model, the presence of clinical signs of PRRS (and/or the associated use of vaccination against PRRS) was significantly associated with PDNS case herds.     

Prevention of transplacental transmission of moderate-virulent classical swine fever virus after single or double vaccination with an E2 subunit vaccine

The use of a vaccine against classical swine fever virus (CSFV) during an outbreak of CSF should lead to a reduction in the horizontal or vertical transmission of CSFV. The reduction of vertical, i.e. transplacental, transmission of a moderate-virulent strain of CSFV from the sow to its offspring was studied in sows vaccinated once or twice with a CSFV E2 subunit vaccine. Two groups of nine sows were vaccinated with one PD95 dose of the E2 subunit vaccine, approximately four weeks before insemination. A third group of nine inseminated sows served as controls. One group of nine sows were vaccinated again at two weeks after insemination. At ten weeks after the primary vaccination, approximately six weeks after insemination, all 27 sows were challenged intranasally with 10(5) TCID50 of a moderate-virulent strain of CSFV, the Van Zoelen strain. The sows were euthanized at five weeks after challenge, and samples from the sows and fetuses were collected for detection of CSFV. All 27 sows were in gestation at the time of slaughter, CSFV was detected in the fetuses of all unvaccinated sows but it was not detected in any of the samples collected from fetuses of the double-vaccinated sows. Virus was however recovered from the fetuses of one out of nine sows vaccinated once. All the sows, except four double-vaccinated sows, developed CSFV Erns antibodies. Transplacental transmission of CSFV was reduced significantly (p <0.001) in all vaccinated sows. When the results from the experiment were extrapolated to a herd level, it could be concluded that, with 95% certainty, approximately 11% (single vaccination) or 0% (double vaccination), confidence intervals of 0.01-0.44 and 0.0-0.30 respectively, of the pregnant sows would still not be protected against vertical transmission of moderate-virulent CSFV. We conclude that vaccination with the CSFV E2 subunit vaccine can reduce the transmission of moderate-virulent strain of CSFV from the sow to its offspring significantly.     

Reproductive performance of sows with and without PRRS modified live virus vaccination in PRRS-virus-seropositive herds

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus infection causes reproductive failures including return to oestrus, abortion, mummified foetuses, stillborn, and weak-born piglets. The objective of the present study was to investigate reproductive performance of sows in PRRS-virus-seropositive herds with and without PRRS modified live virus (PRRS-MLV) vaccination. The study was conducted in 20 PRRS-virus-seropositive commercial swine herds in Thailand. The data included 211,009 mating and 180,935 farrowing records. The analysed variables included farrowing rate (FR), return rate (RR), abortion rate (AR), total number of piglets born per litter (TB), number of piglets born alive per litter (BA), percentage of stillborn (SB), percentage of mummified foetuses (MM), and number of piglets weaned per litter (WP). The results revealed that FR in non-vaccinated sows was lower than that in vaccinated sows (85.0 vs 89.7 %, respectively, P?<?0.001), and RR in non-vaccinated sows was higher than that in vaccinated sows (6.9 vs 3.7 %, respectively, P?<?0.001). AR did not differ significantly between non-vaccinated and vaccinated sows (1.6 and 2.0 %, respectively, P?=?0.964). TB (11.2 and 11.5, respectively, P?<?0.001), BA (10.0 and 10.6, respectively, P?<?0.001), and WP (9.2 and 9.6, respectively, P?<?0.001) in non-vaccinated sows were lower than those in vaccinated sows. SB (6.9 and 5.1 %, respectively, P?<?0.001) and MM (3.2 and 2.2 %, respectively, P?<?0.001) in PRRS-MLV-vaccinated sows were higher than those in non-vaccinated sows. The improvement in sow reproductive performance in PRRS-MLV-vaccinated herds was most pronounced in gilts and primiparous sows.     

Efficacy of different protocols of vaccination against porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) in a farm affected by postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS)

In order to control growing problems associated with porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) several vaccines for piglets or sows were introduced recently. An objective of the study was to compare an efficacy of three different vaccination protocols in the herd with acute postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) outbreak affecting 3-month-old pigs. All of three applied protocols, namely vaccination of sows, piglets or sows and piglets with Circovac proved to be efficacious in controlling of PMWS. All production parameters significantly improved after vaccination. Obtained values were as good as before the outbreak or even better as in case of average daily weight gains. However, decreased mortality before weaning was recorded only after vaccination of sows while in groups where piglets were vaccinated significantly lower mortality in fourth month of life was observed. The impact of different protocols on different parameters suggests that they could be adopted in herds with different porcine circovirus associated problems.     

Clinical signs and their association with herd demographics and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) control strategies in PRRS PCR-positive swine herds in Ontario

The purposes of this study were to describe the clinical signs observed in PRRS positive herds during a porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) outbreak in Ontario and to determine associations between these clinical signs and herd demographics and PRRS control strategies. All PRRS polymerase chain reaction-(PCR)-positive submissions to a diagnostic laboratory between September 1, 2004 and August 31, 2007 were identified (n = 1864). After meeting eligibility requirements and agreeing to voluntary study participation, producers from 455 of these submissions were surveyed for information on clinical signs observed in their herds, herd demographics, and PRRS control strategies used in their herds at the time that the PCR-positive samples were taken. Larger herd size was associated with an increased risk of reporting abortion, weakborn piglets, off-feed sows, and sow mortality in sow herds, and with an increased risk of reporting mortality in finishing herds. When disease control strategies were examined, use of a commercial PRRS vaccine in sows and gilts was associated with a decreased risk of reporting weakborn pigs and high pre-weaning mortality, while the use of serum inoculation in breeding animals was associated with an increased risk of reporting off-feed sows and sow mortality. Providing biofeedback of stillborn/mummified piglets, placenta or feces to gilts was associated with an increased risk of reporting respiratory disease and mortality in finishing pigs while all-in/all-out flow in farrowing rooms was associated with an increased risk of reporting sow mortality and weakborn piglets.     

Vaccination of sows against Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae with Hyoresp

The aim of the study was to investigate the serological reactions of pregnant sows to vaccination with Hyoresp. Further investigations were performed in the offspring of these sows to follow the dynamics of maternal antibodies and the reaction to vaccination at different points in time. The study was conducted in three farrow-to-finish herds endemically infected with M. hyopneumoniae. A total of 30 gilts and 31 sows were vaccinated 8 and 4 weeks ante partum with Hyoresp (Merial GmbH) or given phys. saline solution as a placebo. The offspring was divided into three groups receiving Hyoresp at 1 and 4 or at 4 and 8 weeks of age. The control group was treated with phys. saline solution at 1 and 4 weeks of age. Before vaccination, antibodies against M. hyopneumoniae were detected in 85% of the gilts and 68% of the sows, confirming the endemic infection of the herds. Vaccination of the sows induced a significant increase in the antibody concentration in serum within four weeks and enhanced the concentration of antibodies in the colostrum. As expected, significantly enhanced levels of antibodies were also detected during the first four weeks of life of the offspring of vaccinated sows. The piglets' serological reaction to vaccination at 1 and 4 weeks of age showed marked interferences with maternal antibodies, so that a reaction could be demonstrated only at 8 weeks of age. The serological reaction of piglets vaccinated at 4 and 8 weeks of age was much stronger than that of piglets vaccinated earlier. Surprisingly, the vaccination status of the sow had no effect on the serological response of the piglets in either vaccination scheme. Maternal antibodies are known to reduce the risk of M. hyopneumoniae infections in piglets. Vaccinating the sows against M. hyopneumoniae may thus be an option for farrowing-to-finish herds with an enhanced risk for infections due to ineffective separation of different age groups, poor gilt acclimatisation or high gilt replacement rates.     

Immune response of sows and their offspring to pseudorabies virus: serum neutralization response to vaccination and field virus challenge.

One month prior to breeding, sows were vaccinated with an attenuated pseudorabies virus vaccine or challenged with a field strain of pseudorabies virus. A third group of sows were not vaccinated or challenged before breeding. Pigs from these sows were vaccinated at 3, 6, or 12 weeks of age and challenged with virulent virus three weeks later. One pig from each litter served as an unvaccinated, unchallenged control. Serum neutralization titers of these pigs were monitored from birth until 22 weeks of age. Titers of the sows were monitored through breeding, gestation and farrowing. The maximum prefarrowing anti-pseudorabies virus titer in the field virus challenged sows occurred four weeks following challenge. A significant decline in titers occurred at farrowing. Titers rose from one week postfarrowing and then declined. Titers in the field virus infected sows were consistently two to threefold greater than those of the vaccinated sows. The maximum prefarrowing anti-pseudorabies virus titer in the vaccinated sows occurred six weeks following vaccination. The geometric mean titer in these sow's then decreased and increased for two weeks after farrowing. The results in the pigs can be summarized as follows: Pigs from control sows had a greater serological response following field virus challenge than following vaccination with a modified live virus. Pigs from control sows responded serologically to vaccination at 3, 6 and 12 weeks of age. Pigs from control sows which were challenged at 6, 9 and 15 weeks of age had similar antibody responses. Pigs from vaccinated sows had no increase in titer following vaccination at three and six weeks of age. Titers increased when these pigs were vaccinated at 12 weeks of age. There was no significant increase in mean titers of pigs from challenged sows following vaccination at 3, 6 and 12 weeks of age. Vaccinated pigs from control and vaccinated sows had a secondary response following challenge three weeks after vaccination.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

A retrospective study into characteristics associated with the seroprevalence of pseudorabies virus-infected breeding pigs in vaccinated herds in the southern Netherlands

Vaccination programs to eradicate pseudorabies virus (PRV) are being considered in several countries. Knowledge of factors that influence PRV transmission within vaccinated breeding herds may contribute to the success of these programs. A multivariate analysis of variance of the PRV-seroprevalence in sows in 209 herds (average seroprevalence 67.0% per herd) in the southern Netherlands revealed the following risk indicators: (1) presence of finishing pigs; (2) production type (producers of finishing piglets had a higher seroprevalence than producers of breeding stock); (3) vaccination of the sows during nursing (in comparison with vaccinating all sows simultaneously at 5 month intervals, or vaccination during the second half of gestation); (4) pig density in the municipality where the herd was located (seroprevalence increased with higher pig density); (5) herd size less than 100 sows; (6) average within-herd parity (seroprevalence increased with higher withinherd parity); (7) replacement pigs raised on the premises; (8) vaccine strain administered to the sows. Purchase policy (breeding pigs purchased between 10 weeks and 7 months of age, or use of home-bred gilts only) did not significantly contribute to the multivariate model.     

Pathogenesis of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infection in mid-gestation sows and fetuses.

Two experiments were undertaken to evaluate whether porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus was able to cross the placenta and infect midgestation fetuses following intranasal inoculation of sows and whether PRRS virus directly infected fetuses following in utero inoculation. In experiment 1, eight sows between 45 and 50 days of gestation were intranasally inoculated with PRRS virus (ATCC VR-2332), and four control sows were inoculated with uninfected cell culture lysate. Virus inoculated sows were viremic on postinoculation (PI) days 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9, shed virus in their feces and nasal secretions, and became leukopenic. Sixty-nine of 71 fetuses from principal sows euthanized on PI day 7, 14 or 21 were alive at necropsy and no virus was isolated from any of the fetuses. Two principal sows that farrowed 65 and 67 days PI delivered 25 live piglets and three stillborn fetuses. The PRRS virus was isolated from two live piglets in one litter. In experiment 2, laparotomies were performed on five sows between 40 and 45 days of gestation and fetuses were inoculated in utero with either PRRS virus alone, PRRS virus plus a swine serum containing PRRS antibodies, or uninfected cell culture lysate. Three sows were euthanized on PI day 4 and two sows on PI day 11. Viral replication occurred in fetuses inoculated with virus alone and was enhanced in fetuses inoculated with virus plus antibody. No virus was isolated from control fetuses.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

大肠杆菌MM—3基因工程活菌苗免疫母猪血清及乳清中抗K_(88ac)及LTB抗体动态

以MM-3基因工程活菌苗口服免疫妊娠73d、83d、103d母猪各4头,口服及肌注免疫妊娠92d母猪各5头,用间接BA-ELISA法检测血清及乳清中IgG、IgA和IgM型抗K_(88ac)及LTB抗体的动态变化.结果表明,无论口服还是肌注免疫母猪,抗K_(88ac)及抗LTB抗体均极显著增高.肌注以IgG增加为主,口服以IgA增加为主.肌注免疫IgG型抗K_(88ac)抗体滴度极显著地高于口服免疫(P<0.01);口服免疫IgA型抗LTB抗体滴度显著高于肌注免疫(P<0.05).口服及肌注免疫乳清中抗K_(88ac)及抗LTB抗体滴度很高,达1:3200～204800,但在1周内即降低,约减少一半(约3～5个滴度),2～3周内各型抗体下降缓慢,维持在对照组周内水平,4周后达最低水平.妊娠不同时期口服免疫,其血清中抗K_(88ac)抗体的动态变化相似,但乳汁中抗体则差异非常明显,妊娠83d和92d免疫组IgG、IgA和IgM均显著增加,且高于103d组(P<0.01)和73d组(P<0.05).口服免疫的最佳时间为分娩前26～30d,肌注免疫最佳免疫时间为分娩前21d.     

Associations between genetics, farm characteristics and clinical disease in field outbreaks of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is a disease of domestic swine characterized by exceptionally high clinical variability. This study addresses the question of whether clinical variability in PRRS results from (a) genetic variation among viral isolates and/or (b) variation in management practices among farms on which isolates are found. Genetic data (open reading frame 5 gene sequences) and data on farm characteristics and associated clinical disease signs were collected for 62 PRRS virus (PRRSV) field isolates, representing 52 farms. Clinical disease signs were interrelated — confirming that a true reproductive syndrome exists (involving abortions, infertility in sows, deaths of sows and preweaning mortality).

Pairs of farms experiencing deaths in their sow populations also tended to share viral isolates which were more similar to one another than expected by chance alone. This implies that sow death (one of the more-severe manifestations of PRRS) is under genetic influence. Large herd size was a significant risk factor for the death of sows and for respiratory disease in nursery pigs. All-in–all-out management practices in the nursery were protective against reproductive signs in the sow herd. All-in–all-out management practices in the finishing stages of production were protective against respiratory disease in nursery pigs — but were paradoxically associated with an increased risk of infertility in sows. These results suggest that farm-management practices can also influence which PRRS clinical signs are manifested during an outbreak. In general, signs associated with PRRS appear to result from a combination of genetic factors and herd-management characteristics. The relative contributions of these two influences differ depending on the specific clinical sign in question.     

Vaccination of pregnant sows against transmissible gastroenteritis with two attenuated virus strains and different inoculation routes

Summary

Two attenuated transmissible gastro‐enteritis (T. G. E.) virus strains were used for vaccination experiments in sows.

Four different experiments were carried out (see Table 1). In each experiment, 9 sows were vaccinated during pregnancy and 3 sows served as controls. They were kept together in one farrowing house. The sows were due to farrow at about the same time. The sows and their litters were challenged shortly after farrowing by exposing 3 piglets of 2 control litters to virulent TGE virus.

The following vaccination schedules were used (see Table 1): twice intramuscularly with TGE‐vac (a commercially available TGE‐vaccine), one oral administration followed by an intramuscular vaccination with an attenuated TGE Purdue (Pu) strain, twice orally with Pu strain in enteric coated capsules, and one direct intra intestinal administration followed by 2 intramuscular vaccinations or 3 intramuscular vaccinations with the Pu strain.

All sows, except most of those treated with enteric coated capsules, seroconverted demonstrably (Table 2). The geometric mean seroneutralization (SN) titer log 2 varied from 4.1 to 7.5 after the first vaccination and from 7.6 to 10 after the second vaccination.

None of the vaccination schedules resulted in an effective lactogenic immunity. The morbidity in the piglets was 100% within 3 to 5 days after challenge. The mortality rate varied from 44 to 80% in litters from vaccinated sows and from 71 to 100% in litters from control sows (see Table 3). Clinical signs were observed in 33,3% of the control sows and in 36% of the vaccinated sows.

No correlation was found between the titer of SN antibodies in the sera of the piglets and their survival rate (Table 4).

A rapid decrease in antibody concentration was observed, during the first week of lactation in milk samples collected from 4 orally and intramuscularly vaccinated sows (Table 5).     

Immune responses to foot-and-mouth disease virus in pig farms after the 1997 outbreak in Taiwan

This paper reports on a retrospective study of the antibody responses to structural and non-structural proteins of FMD virus O Taiwan 97 in six pig herds in Taiwan in the year after the 1997 Taiwanese FMD outbreak. All herds were vaccinated against FMD after the outbreak as part of the countrywide control program. Three of the herds had confirmed FMD infections (herds N, O and P) and three herds remained non-infected (herds K, L and M). The serum neutralizing antibody titers and the non-structural protein ELISA (NSP) antibody responses in sows and 1-month-old pigs in the infected herds were higher than in the non-infected herds, but over time a number of positive NSP reactors were detected. From the serological studies and the herd monitoring and investigations it was considered that the FMD NSP positive reactors may not have constituted a true reservoir of FMD virus infection especially in herds where susceptible pigs were no longer present post-exposure or post-vaccination. Pigs vaccinated with an unpurified FMD type O vaccines being used at that time also showed false positive responses for NSP antibodies.     

Long‐term administration of a commercial porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV)‐inactivated vaccine in PRRSV‐endemically infected sows

The purpose of this study was to investigate the safety and efficacy of a commercial European porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV)‐inactivated vaccine after 18‐month use in gilts/sows at a farm with high seroprevalence. In a farrow‐to‐finish farm with 1100 sows, all sows and gilts were systematically vaccinated with the PRRS‐inactivated PROGRESSIS® vaccine for a period of 18 months. Farm's reproductive and litter characteristics were longitudinally recorded for this period and historically compared with those of the year prior to vaccination. Serology, employing immunoperoxidase monolayer assay, had confirmed a high prevalence of PRRS‐specific antibodies in most age groups within the farm prior to vaccination. Seroprevalence during the experiment ranged between 0% and 100% in weaners and growers, but remained at stable high levels (>93%) in finishing pigs and gilts throughout all 2‐year period of serology measurements. No local or systemic vaccine side effects were noted throughout the trial period. Vaccinations had resulted over time in a significant improvement of sow reproductive performance (e.g. reduction of premature farrowings, abortions and increase of farrowing rate) and litter characteristics (e.g. increase of the number of live born and weaned pigs and decrease of stillborn, mummified, weak and splay‐legged piglets). It has also been observed that the higher the degree of immunization of a sow, the better the improvement of her reproductive parameters. Sows after vaccination have shown improved characteristics compared to homoparous sows prior to the application of vaccinations in the farm.