As pregnancy can adversely affect the immune response of vaccination against foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) due to physiological immunosuppressive milieu, we tested the effect of FMDV vaccination during mid-gestation on the antibody response. Pregnant and non-pregnant cows of crossbred and indigenous breed (n=28/group) were vaccinated with inactivated FMD vaccine covering O, A, and Asia1 serotypes and the sera were harvested at weekly interval till day 42 post-vaccination. Virus neutralization test (VNT) was done and the analysis of log10 VN50 antibody titer by mixed model ANOVA indicated that pregnancy did not significantly affect the log10 VN50 titer for FMDV serotype O and Asia1. Though pregnancy significantly decreased the titer for FMDV serotype A, the effect size was small. The experiment was repeated in purebred HF cows (n=10/group) and the results were reproducible. It was concluded that mid-pregnancy would not hamper the herd immunity to FMD vaccination in the cow.
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