Facilitation of antibody forming responses to viral vaccine antigens in young cats by recombinant baculovirus-expressed feline IFN

We assessed the effect of recombinant feline IFN-γ as vaccine adjuvant for in vivo antibody responses of young 3-month-old kittens to inactivated antigens of rabies and calicivirus, both natural pathogens for cats. When compared to responses following immunization with antigen alone co-administration of baculovirus-expressed cat IFN-γ significantly enhanced serum antibody titers to both viral antigens; to levels comparable with responses evoked by commonly known saponin and alum adjuvants. Adjuvanticity by feline IFN-γ was dose-dependent and all doses tested were well tolerated. We conclude that, when further optimized for in vivo delivery, feline IFN-γ may represent a safe and efficient natural vaccine adjuvant for certain antigens in cats

A novel guinea pig model of Chlamydia trachomatis genital tract infection

Contains fulltext : 95582.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)Genital Chlamydia trachomatis infections often result in pelvic inflammatory disease and sequelae including infertility and ectopic pregnancies. In addition to the already established murine models, the development of other animal models is necessary to study the safety and efficacy of prototype vaccine candidates. The intravaginal infection of guinea pigs with C. trachomatis has been tested in three independent studies. The first two studies investigated the effect of hormonal treatment of the animals prior to infection with serovars D and E. The results showed that estradiol treatment was required for sustained infection. The third study conducted an immunization-challenge experiment to explore the feasibility of measuring protection in this guinea pig model. C. trachomatis bacteria were sampled using vaginal swabs and measured by qPCR. Using immunohistochemistry the bacteria were detected in the oviducts 19 days post-infection, indicating that the estradiol treatment resulted in ascending infection. Furthermore, immunization of guinea pigs with live EB formulated with ISCOM matrix led to reduction of cervico-vaginal shedding and diminished the severity of pathology. In this study we have developed a new guinea pig model of C. trachomatis female genital tract infection for the purpose of evaluating potential vaccine candidates