ORALLY-ADMINISTERED BOVINE COLOSTRAL IMMUNOGLOBULINS (BCI) PROTECT LEUKOPENIC MICE AGAINST Ps. AERUGINOSA (Ps)

Abstract

We immunized pregnant cows with Ps Extract Vaccine (Wellcome, UK) to produce anti-Ps BCI. Anti-Ps BCI have agglutinating and opsonizing activity against Ps, but are not bacteriacidal or static. By adsorption with Ps, these activities can be removed from BCI. Bovine IgGl can be identified on the surface of Ps adsorbed with anti-Ps BCI. We compared the protective effect of orally-fed anti-Ps BCI, control BCI from non-immunized (NI) cows, pooled human immune globulin (HIG), and D5W on the mortality of leukopenic mice orally-inoculated with Ps. Mice (18-22g) were made leukopenic with cyclophosphamide, fed globulins or D5W daily (days 1-6) per gavage, and orally-inoculated on day 4 with 106 Ps serotype 10. WBCs on day 4 were 2331 ± 696. Survival data were evaluated by the Kruskal-Wallis statistic and nonparametric log-rank test with adjustment for multiple comparisons.Treatment group survival curves were not equal (p<0.01). Anti-Ps BCI-fed animals had less mortality than NI-BCI, HIG, or D5W-fed animals, but these differences reached statistical significance only for anti-Ps BCI vs D5W (z=3.676, p<0.05). Conclusion: Orally fed anti-Ps BCI may reduce the incidence and mortality of Ps sepsis in the transiently leukopenic host