Failure of transfer of passive immunity and agammaglobulinaemia in calves in south-west Victorian dairy herds: prevalence and risk factors.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of failure of transfer of passive immunity (FTPI) and agammaglobulinaemia in calves in south-west Victorian dairy herds and identify associated risk factors for both outcomes. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: Serum total protein was measured in 1018 calves from 100 south-west Victorian dairy herds. The proportions of calves with FTPI and agammaglobulinaemia were determined and logistic regression with random effects used to identify calf- and herd-level variables associated with both conditions. RESULTS: In total, 38% of calves had FTPI and 8% of calves had agammaglobulinaemia. Two-thirds of herds had more than 25% of calves with FTPI. Jersey and Jersey-cross calves were less likely than Holstein-Friesian calves to have FTPI (odds ratio (OR) 0.53 and 0.57, respectively). Dairy-beef crossbreed calves were more likely to have agammaglobulinaemia than Holstein-Friesian calves (OR 3.52) and bull calves were more likely to have agammaglobulinaemia than heifer calves (OR 2.22). Removal of calves from the calving area less than twice a day was associated with increased odds of FTPI (OR 1.61) and agammaglobulinaemia (OR 1.97) relative to more frequent removal. CONCLUSION: There is considerable potential to improve the transfer of passive immunity in dairy herds in south-west Victoria. The prevalence of both FTPI and agammaglobulinaemia is likely to be reduced by collecting calves from the calving area twice daily and hand-feeding them extra colostrum immediately after their removal from the calving area.

Immunodeficiency disorders in horses.

Immunodeficiencies are characterized as primary (genetic) or secondary (acquired). Primary immunodeficiencies are relatively uncommon; however, clinically, they present a significant challenge to the practitioner, especially if the underlying disorder goes unrecognized. Secondary immunodeficiencies may present at any age, but failure of passive transfer in neonatal foals is most commonly encountered. This article provides a general overview of clinical signs and diagnosis of primary and secondary immunodeficiencies currently recognized in horses.

[Reliability of the glutaraldehyde test to measure gamma-globulin levels in foals and the use of this test to check colostrum intake of foals]. / Een onderzoek naar de betrouwbaarheid van de glutaaraldehydetest voor de bepaling van het gammaglobulinegehalte in het serum van veulens en naar de bruikbaarheid van deze test in de praktijk bij het controleren van de colostrumopname bij veulens.

The glutaraldehyde coagulation test is a semi-quantitative test used to determine the gammaglobulin concentration in serum. The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability of the different modifications of this test by determining the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, and the prevalence of hypogammaglobulinemia in foals. The results of the glutaraldehyde coagulation test were compared with the serum gammaglobulin concentration as a reference value, determined by measuring total serum protein and the serum protein spectrum. It was concluded that the glutaraldehyde coagulation test is a suitable test to use in the field for determining the serum gammaglobulin concentration in foals. The test has good sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value when using a 5% glutaraldehyde solution and when results are evaluated at 30 minutes for a serum concentration of 8 g/l and at 50 minutes for a serum concentration of 5.5 g/l, a concentration below which therapy is recommended.

Passive transfer of colostral immunoglobulin G in neonatal llamas and alpacas.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate precolostral hypogammaglobulinemia in neonatal llamas and alpacas, to determine when postcolostral peak serum IgG concentrations develop, to determine whether differences in postcolostral serum IgG concentrations between llamas and alpacas exist, and to determine postcolostral half-life of serum IgG in llamas and alpacas. DESIGN: Prospective observational study. ANIMALS: 29 llama and 10 alpaca crias. PROCEDURE: Blood samples were collected prior to suckling and on days 1, 2, and 3 after parturition and analyzed for serum IgG concentration by use of a commercial radial immunodiffusion assay. Additional samples were collected on days 8, 13, and 18 from 8 crias to determine mean half-life of IgG. RESULTS: Llamas and alpacas are born severely hypogammaglobulinemic. Mean serum IgG concentrations for day-1, -2, and -3 samples for llamas were 1,578 mg/dl, 1,579 mg/dl, and 1,401 mg/dl, respectively, and for alpacas were 2,024 mg/dl, 1,806 mg/dl, and 1,669 mg/dl, respectively. Peak serum immunoglobulin concentration developed between days 1 and 2. Mean half-life of IgG for all crias was 15.7 days. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Although increased mortality has been linked to failure of passive transfer, it is clearly possible to raise crias that have low serum immunoglobulin concentrations. Llamas and alpacas do not differ significantly with respect to immunoglobulin absorption or IgG concentration in neonates. The optimal sampling time for passive transfer status is between 1 and 2 days.

[Agamma-, hypogamma- and hypergammaglobulinemia. The significance of the 'relative immune status' for the young calf]. / Agamma-, hypogamma- en hypergammaglobulinaemie. De betekenis van de 'relatieve immuunstatus' voor het jonge kalf.

Calves affected with hypergammaglobulinaemia are more likely to survive than are those with agamma- or hypogammaglobulinaemia. Nevertheless, there are farms on which satisfactory results are obtained in rearing calves with low Ig levels. Management conditions, including the presence of specific or non-specific, bacterial or viral infections, are important factors in these cases. Besides humoral immunity, local protection against neonatal diarrhoea afforded by colostrum, is of even greater importance. As the concentrations of Ig in young calves decrease, production of immunity in these calves will start earlier in life, which may even be within a few days.

Assessing efficiency of passive immune transfer in dairy herds.

Blood serum immunoglobulin concentrations of calves during their 2nd wk of life had a .97 correlation with 1st wk concentrations. Correlations between 1st wk concentrations and those in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th wk of life were .91, .90, .81, and .69. Ten herds were divided into those with mortality rates above and below the median. The major difference in distributions of immunoglobulin concentration between the two groups was percent of calves with concentrations less than 2.5 mg/ml during the 1st wk of life. Calves were sampled monthly for a full year in 19 herds, and all but one herd had one or more calves with immunoglobulin concentrations under 5.0 mg/ml. Overall, calves having immunoglobulin concentrations under 5.0 mg/ml were exposed to excess mortality risk; however, most of the excess risk was concentrated in three herds with high mortality rates (16 to 20%). Evaluating the efficiency of passive immune transfer through the use of management data was unreliable in comparison with assaying serum samples for immunoglobulin concentration.

The relationship between serum immunoglobulin values and incidence of respiratory disease and enteritis in calves.

Serum immunoglobulin levels were tested in 193 neonatal calves by use of the glutaraldehyde coagulation test. Hypo- and agammaglobulinaemia was found in 26.4% of the calves. A close relationship was found between immunoglobulin levels and the incidence of enteritis and mortality, while the number of calves suffering from both enteritis and respiratory disease was higher in immunoglobulin-deficient calves. The application of specific preventive measures to immunoglobulin-deficient calves is discussed.

Hypogammaglobulinaemia in foals: prevalence on Victorian studs and simple methods for detection and correction in the field.

The prevalence of hypogammaglobulinaemia in 82 young foals was determined. Twelve foals were considered clinically abnormal at birth and ten died within two weeks. All of these foals were hypogammaglobulinaemic. Seven (10%) of the other 70 apparently normal foals were hypogammaglobulinaemic despite having suckled normally. Three of these foals developed significant disease and one died at one month of age. Rapid detection of foals with low serum immunoglobulin levels was achieved by adapting the zinc sulphate turbidity test to partially evacuated blood collection tubes. This permitted test to be conducted on the stud or in the veterinarian's own laboratory. Plasma concentrated twofold by a freeze thaw technique was administered intravenously to supplement the immunoglobulin levels of two colostrum deprived foals. The simplicity of the concentration procedure eliminated the need for laboratory preparation of equine immunoglobulin.

Evaluation for immune system failures in horses and ponies.

Between January 1973 and September 1979, 2,092 horses and ponies were evaluated for immunologic disorders. A total of 418 abnormalities were detected in 416 (20%) of the animals tested. Disorders encountered were failure or partial failure of colostral immunoglobulin transfer from mare to foal (228 cases), combined immunodeficiency (159 cases), selective immunoglobulin M deficiency (19 cases), agammaglobulinemia (3 cases), transient hypogammaglobulinemia (2 cases), and lymphosarcoma (7 cases). Four conclusions were drawn from the study. (1) Immunologic abnormalities occur commonly in horses and ponies. (2) Failure and partial failure of passive transfer were the most common disorders, involving 19.7% of surveyed foals at risk. (3) Combined immunodeficiency remains a disease limited to Arabian horses. (4) Considering the high frequency of immunologic disorders in horses and the availability of diagnostic tests for the disorders, older animals with recurrent infections as well as all newborn foals should be evaluated for immune disorders.

Colostral immunoglobulin transfer in calves. III. Amount of absorption.

Amount of colostrum fed and age at first feeding are the two major factors in determining maximum immunoglobulin concentration in serum for each immunoglobulin class in postcolostral calves. Both factors show linear response: increasing age, decreasing concentration; increasing amount fed up to 2 liters, increasing concentration. The two factors interact in a curvilinear response. Calves with initial feeding at progressively older ages need less colostrum to reach maximum absorption. Maximum absorption is represented by a progressively lower immunoglobulin concentration in serum with increasing age. Response surface contours for the maximum immunoglobulins IgG, IgM, and IgA, based on experimental data, have been included. Neither body weights of the experimental calves nor pooled colostral concentrations of immunoglobulin from pooled colostrums fed to the calves influenced maximum concentrations of immunoglobulin in serum.

[Characteristics of immunoglobulin dynamics and absorption in newborn calves]. / Osobenosti v dinamikata i usvoiavaneto na imunoglobulinite pri novorodeni teleta.

A study on protein dynamics in calf blood serum from the time of birth to age of 60 days was carried out by use of electrophoresis on 1% agar gel, immunodiffusion and immunoelectrophoresis with rabbit immune serum against cattle blood serum, colostrum whey and pure nu-globulin. Investigations were performed on the 4th and 24th hour, and on the 3rd, 6th, 8th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 30th, 45th and 60th day after birth. Resorption of colostral gamma globulins, applied intravenously and orally in the form of the preparation lactoplasmin and 10% normal gamma-globulin injected intravenously was followed under experimental conditions. It was established that calves are born with a comparatively low protein level in the blood serum and after feeding with colostrum begins, specific quantitative and qualitative changes in their profile take place, but the changes concerning gamma-globulins are most pronounced. gamma-globulins are best resorbed after oral application of colostral globulin preparations, and not so well after intravenous application. Noral blood gamma-globulin injected intravenously is least resorbed. Eventual causes for this fact are discussed.

[Effect of different systems of colostral nutrition on the level of immunoglobulins in the blood of calves]. / Vliv ruzného zpusobu kolostrální výzivy na hladinu imunoglobulinu v krvi telat.

New-born calves, artificially fed colostrum or native colostral whey, either dried or preserved by another method, had good health and good weight gains (between 0.05 and 0.60 kg). No greater differences were observed between the groups of calves given three times the colostrum of their mothers, calves given mixed colostrum, and calves fed colostral whey powder. In all groups only individual differences in IgG content in the blood serum were observed after 48 hours from birth. Hypogammaglobulinaemia occurred in individual cases both in calves given small amounts of colostrum or colostral whey and in calves given sufficient quantities. The time that had elapsed from birth to the first drinking did not exert any greater influence upon the IgG level in the blood; the decisive factor was the amount of colostrum taken in by the calf in the first dose. The rate of the absorption of IgG1, IgG2, IgA, and IgM from colostrum and the concentration of the immunoglobulins in the serum depended on the quantity of colostrum in the first dose and were not influenced to any greater degree by the amount of colostrum given to the calves in further doses. The amount of IgG in the blood serum of calves corresponded approximately to the level of colostral antibodies to the virus PI-3. The antibodies to the virus PI-3 and small quantities of IgG were observed also in the serum to new-born calves before drinking colostrum.

Agammaglobulinemia in a horse with evidence of functional T lymphocytes.

Agammaglobulinemia was diagnosed in a 1-year-old Thoroughbred horse on the basis of the following observations: (1) absence of serum immunoglobulins M, A, and G(T); (2) small amounts of serum immunoglobulin G (16 mg/100 ml); (3) absence of specific antibody in the serum of the horse following immunization and challenge exposure to 2 antigens; (4) absence of plasma cells, primary follicles, and germinal centers in a lymph node removed after antigenic stimulation; (5) absence of "natural" serum antibodies to rabbit-erythrocytes which were easily detectable in age-matched control horse serums; and (6) increased susceptibility to infections. There was evidence of functional cell-mediated immunity which included a skin response to injected phytolectins, skin response to antigen challenge following sensitization, and in vitro proliferative response of lymph node cells to phytohemagglutinin. An intact cell-mediated immune response was also supported by the observation that the horse lived to 17 months of age without antibody production, whereas horses with an absence of both antibody production and cell-mediated immunity (combined immunodeficiency) die by 4 months of age without immunologic intervention. The known features of agammaglobulinemia in this horse are similar to those in sex-linked agammaglobulinemia in persons and are unique among the immunodeficiences described in other animals.