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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Effectiveness of two FeLV vaccines in cats after virus exposure

By Patel, M et al.·Published in Clinical and vaccine immunology : CVI·2015·Merck Animal Health, United States·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: Comparative Efficacy of Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) Inactivated Whole-Virus Vaccine and Canarypox Virus-Vectored Vaccine during Virulent FeLV Challenge and Immunosuppression.

Species:
cat

Plain-English summary

A group of kittens was vaccinated against feline leukemia virus (FeLV) using two different vaccines: Nobivac feline 2-FeLV and PureVax recombinant FeLV. After being vaccinated, the kittens were exposed to the virus to see how well the vaccines worked. The kittens that received the Nobivac vaccine showed complete protection from the virus, while those that received the PureVax vaccine had a much higher rate of infection. The study found that the Nobivac vaccine not only prevented the virus from taking hold but also resulted in lower levels of the virus in the blood compared to the other vaccine and unvaccinated kittens.

People also search for: cat leukemia vaccine comparison · FeLV vaccine effectiveness · kitten vaccination schedule

Abstract

Four vaccines for feline leukemia virus (FeLV) are available in the United States. This study's purpose was to compare the efficacy of Nobivac feline 2-FeLV (an inactivated, adjuvanted whole-virus vaccine) and PureVax recombinant FeLV (a live, canarypox virus-vectored vaccine) following FeLV challenge. Cats were vaccinated at 9 and 12 weeks with Nobivac feline 2-FeLV (group A, n = 11) or PureVax recombinant FeLV (group B, n = 10). Group C (n = 11) comprised unvaccinated controls. At 3 months postvaccination, cats were immunosuppressed and challenged with FeLV-A/61E. The outcomes measured were persistent antigenemia at 12 weeks postchallenge (PC) and proviral DNA and viral RNA at 3 to 9 weeks PC. Persistent antigenemia was observed in 0 of 11 cats in group A, 5 of 10 cats in group B, and 10 of 11 cats in group C. Group A was significantly protected compared to those in groups B (P < 0.013) and C (P < 0.0001). No difference was found between groups B and C (P > 0.063). The preventable fraction was 100% for group A and 45% for group B. At 9 weeks PC, proviral DNA and viral RNA were detected 1 of 11 cats in group A, 6 of 10 cats in group B, and 9 of 11 cats in group C. Nucleic acid loads were significantly lower in group A than in group C (P < 0.01). Group A had significantly lower proviral DNA loads than group B at weeks 6 to 9 (P < 0.02). The viral RNA loads were significantly lower in group A than in group B at weeks 7 to 9 (P < 0.01). The results demonstrate that Nobivac feline 2-FeLV-vaccinated cats were fully protected against persistent antigenemia and had significantly smaller amounts of proviral DNA and plasma viral RNA loads than PureVax recombinant FeLV-vaccinated cats and unvaccinated controls.

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25972402/