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Comparative Study
. 2007 Sep 28:3:24.
doi: 10.1186/1746-6148-3-24.

Ovine Enzootic Abortion (OEA): a comparison of antibody responses in vaccinated and naturally-infected swiss sheep over a two year period

Andrea Gerber  1 , Ruedi Thoma, Evangelia Vretou, Evgenia Psarrou, Carmen Kaiser, Marcus G Doherr, Dieter R Zimmermann, Adam Polkinghorne, Andreas Pospischil, Nicole Borel
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Ovine Enzootic Abortion (OEA): a comparison of antibody responses in vaccinated and naturally-infected swiss sheep over a two year period

Andrea Gerber et al. BMC Vet Res. .

Abstract

Background: Prevention and control of ovine enzootic abortion (OEA) can be achieved by application of a live vaccine. In this study, five sheep flocks with different vaccination and infection status were serologically tested using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) specific for Chlamydophila (Cp.) abortus over a two-year time period.

Results: Sheep in Flock A with recent OEA history had high antibody values after vaccination similar to Flock C with natural Cp. abortus infections. In contrast, OEA serology negative sheep (Flock E) showed individual animal-specific immunoreactions after vaccination. Antibody levels of vaccinated ewes in Flock B ranged from negative to positive two and three years after vaccination, respectively. Positive antibody values in the negative control Flock D (without OEA or vaccination) are probably due to asymptomatic intestinal infections with Cp. abortus. Excretion of the attenuated strain of Cp. abortus used in the live vaccine through the eye was not observed in vaccinated animals of Flock E.

Conclusion: The findings of our study indicate that, using serology, no distinction can be made between vaccinated and naturally infected sheep. As a result, confirmation of a negative OEA status in vaccinated animals by serology cannot be determined.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Box plots of cELISA antibody values of all examined sheep over the four investigation dates. Some or all animals in flocks A, B and E were vaccinated at given times (gray boxes).
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