Protection from infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV)-induced immunosuppression by immunization with a fowlpox recombinant containing IBDV-VP2

Abstract

Immunosuppression resulting from infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) infection has critical health and welfare implications for birds, yet it is incompletely understood and largely overlooked as a measure of vaccine efficacy. The ability of a fowlpoxvirus recombinant (fpIBD1) containing the VP2 protein of IBDV to protect against IBDV-induced immunosuppression was investigated by measuring the convalescent chicken's ability to mount antibody responses to IBDV infection, and to inactivated IBDV and salmonella vaccines.

An immunoglobulin (Ig)M response, but no IgG response, occurred after IBDV infection. Uninfected chickens produced a sustained IgM response and some IgG response to inactivated IBDV vaccine, while in previously infected birds only a transient IgM response was detected. A moderate suppression of the response to a commercial salmonella vaccine was evident after IBDV infection, which was largely prevented by immunization with fpIBD1. These results indicate that measurement of immunosuppression could be a useful strategy for assessing the efficacy of vaccines to protect against the consequences of IBDV infection.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Dr Jim Kaufman, Dr Nat Bumstead and Dr Adrian Smith for useful discussion, Adrian van Loon (Intervet, The Netherlands) for titrating the F52/70 viral stock, and Lorraine Smith and Helen Walter for expert technical assistance.