Correlation of Neutralizing Antibodies (NAbs) between Sows and Piglets and Evaluation of Protectability Associated with Maternally Derived NAbs in Pigs against Circulating Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) under Field Conditions
Fu-Chun Hsueh,
Sheng-Yuan Wang,
Wei-Hao Lin,
Chuen-Fu Lin,
Chen-Yu Tsai,
Chin-Wen Huang,
Ning Sun,
Ming-Tang Chiou,
Chao-Nan Lin
Affiliations
Fu-Chun Hsueh
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Sheng-Yuan Wang
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Wei-Hao Lin
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Chuen-Fu Lin
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Chen-Yu Tsai
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Chin-Wen Huang
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Ning Sun
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Ming-Tang Chiou
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Chao-Nan Lin
Animal Disease Diagnostic Center, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, Taiwan
Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), which is caused by a highly transmissible pathogen called porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), has caused severe problems, including reproductive disorders in sows and respiratory symptoms in nursery pigs worldwide, since the early 1990s. However, currently available PRRSV vaccines do not supply complete immunity to confront the viral infection. Elicitation of PRRSV-specific neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) during the preinfectious period has been deemed to be a feasible strategy to modulate this virus, especially in farms where nursery pigs are seized with PRRSVs. A total of 180 piglets in a farrow-to-finish farm that had a natural outbreak of PRRS were distributed into three groups based on the different PRRSV NAbs levels in their dams. In the present study, piglets that received superior maternal-transferred NAbs showed delayed and relatively slight viral loads in serum and, on the whole, higher survival rates against wild PRRSV infections. A positive correlation of maternal NAbs between sows and their piglets was identified; moreover, high NAbs titers in piglets can last for at least 4 weeks. These results provide updated information to develop an appropriate immune strategy for breeding and for future PRRSV control under field conditions.