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Passive Immunization of Pacific Herring against Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia
Author(s) -
Hershberger P. K.,
Gregg J. L.,
Grady C. A.,
LaPatra S. E.,
Winton J. R.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of aquatic animal health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.507
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1548-8667
pISSN - 0899-7659
DOI - 10.1080/08997659.2011.616838
Subject(s) - pacific herring , herring , clupea , biology , immunity , virology , titer , herd immunity , immunization , immunology , immune system , virus , vaccination , fish <actinopterygii> , fishery
The plasma of Pacific herring Clupea pallasii that survived laboratory‐induced viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) epizootics contained humoral substances that, when injected into naïve animals, conferred passive immunity against the disease. Among groups exposed to viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV), injection of donor plasma from VHS survivors resulted in significantly greater survival (50%) and significantly lower tissue titers (1.5 × 10 5 plaque‐forming units [PFU]/g) than the injection of plasma from VHSV‐naïve donors (6% survival; 3.7 × 10 6 PFU/g). Additionally, the magnitude of the protective immune response increased during the postexposure period; plasma that was collected from survivors at 123 d postexposure (931 degree‐days) provided greater protection than plasma collected from survivors at 60 d postexposure (409 degree‐days). These results provide proof of concept that the VHSV exposure history of Pacific herring populations can be determined post hoc; furthermore, the results can be used as the foundation for developing additional high‐throughput diagnostic techniques that may be effective at quantifying herd immunity and forecasting the potential for future VHS epizootics in populations of wild Pacific herring. Received October 20, 2010; accepted April 7, 2011