Prepartum equine rotavirus vaccination inducing strong specific IgG in mammary secretions

ROTAVIRUSES are a major cause ofdiarrhoea in young foals and other domesticated species. Prepartum vaccination is widely used as a means of stimulating specific antibodies in mammary secretions to prevent rotaviral infections in suck-ling calves and piglets through passive immunisation (Saif and Fernandez 1996). The aim of this study was to charac-terise rotavirus-specific antibody isotype responses in the colostrum and milk ofvaccinated mares, and their transfer to the blood of foals. The vaccine contained an inactivated H2 strain of equine rotavirus (ERV H2) and a metabolisable oil-in-water adjuvant (Fort Dodge Animal Health).