Comparison of serum immunoglobulin G half-life in dairy calves fed colostrum, colostrum replacer or administered with intravenous bovine plasma

Abstract

In calves, passive immunity of immunoglobulins can be acquired through ingestion of colostrum or colostrum replacers. Plasma can been used to supplement immunoglobulins in healthy or sick calves. Serum half-life of colostral derived immuglobulin G (IgG) is estimated to be 20 days. Half-life of IgG is important in determining response to antigens and timing of vaccination in calves. To date studies evaluating half-life of colostrum replacer or plasma derived IgG are lacking. The objectives of this study were to compare the serum half-life of IgG derived from colostrum, colostrum replacer and plasma in dairy calves reared up to 35 days of age. Thirty Jersey calves were randomly assigned to receive colostrum or colostrum replacer by oroesophageal tubing or plasma by intravenous administration. Serum samples were collected at 2, 5, 7, 10, 14, 21, 28 and 35 days. Serum IgG concentrations were determined by radial immunodiffusion. The results indicated that half-life for IgG in colostrum fed (28.5 days) or plasma transfused calves (27.3 days) was longer than colostrum replacer fed calves (19.1 days). Further studies are required to evaluate pathogen specific immunoglobulins in order to recommend vaccination timing in calves fed colostrum replacers.

Field trial to evaluate the effect of an intranasal respiratory vaccine protocol on bovine respiratory disease incidence and growth in a commercial calf rearing unit

“…To the best of our knowledge, there are no studied reference values for serum IgG levels for calves 2-4 weeks old. For two day old calves, 10 mg/ml is commonly used as the minimum level for successful passive transfer, but earlier studies have shown that the amount of IgG in serum decreases slowly after birth, with a half-life of 28.5 days [33]. In the current study, 44.1% of the calves with low serum IgG (< 10 mg/ml on arrival; mean age 17 days) were treated at least once against BRD, compared with 34.2% of the calves with high serum IgG (> 10 mg/ml at arrival, mean age 17 days).…”

A Randomized Clinical Trial Evaluating Metabolism of Colostral and Plasma Derived ImmunoglobulinGinJersey Bull Calves

“…Failure of passive immunity is a significant risk factor for morbidity and mortality from diseases of calves including diarrhea and pneumonia . In clinical settings, IV administration has been recommended as part of medical management of healthy or sick calves with FPI, that >24 h because colostral immunoglobulin G (IgG) absorption has ceased . A recent study evaluating serum IgG concentrations after IV plasma administration at the recommended dosage of 30 mL/kg indicated that the majority of calves did not achieve serum IgG concentrations consistent with adequate transfer of immunity (ie, serum IgG ≥1,000 mg/dL) at 48 h of age.…”

“…In clinical settings, IV administration has been recommended as part of medical management of healthy or sick calves with FPI, that >24 h because colostral immunoglobulin G (IgG) absorption has ceased . A recent study evaluating serum IgG concentrations after IV plasma administration at the recommended dosage of 30 mL/kg indicated that the majority of calves did not achieve serum IgG concentrations consistent with adequate transfer of immunity (ie, serum IgG ≥1,000 mg/dL) at 48 h of age. A limitation of this study was that serum IgG concentrations were not evaluated until 48 h after plasma transfusion.…”

“…A recent study evaluating serum IgG concentrations after IV plasma administration at the recommended dosage of 30 mL/kg indicated that the majority of calves did not achieve serum IgG concentrations consistent with adequate transfer of immunity (ie, serum IgG ≥1,000 mg/dL) at 48 h of age. A limitation of this study was that serum IgG concentrations were not evaluated until 48 h after plasma transfusion. Thus, metabolism of IgG before 48 h was not determined.…”

“…Currently, studies evaluating metabolism of plasma derived IgG in cattle are lacking. In clinical practice, it is assumed, that healthy or sick neonatal calves with FPI that are given plasma IV, at the recommended dosage of 20–40 mL/kg will achieve and maintain serum IgG concentrations consistent with adequate transfer of immunity (ie, serum IgG concentrations ≥1,000 mg/dL) . We hypothesized that IV administered plasma derived IgG would undergo increased catabolism as reflected by a rapid decrease in serum IgG concentration and an increase in fecal IgG concentrations within 48 h. Increased IgG catabolism will result in serum IgG concentrations consistent with FPI (<1,000 mg/dL) at 48 h after transfusion.…”