Evaluation of carbopol as an adjuvant on the effectiveness of progressive atrophic rhinitis vaccine

The Gram-negative pathogen toxigenic P. multocida causes progressive atrophic rhinitis (PAR) in swine throughout the world. Although some vaccines are being developed against PAR, their efficacy has not been evaluated using carbopol. In our study, a mixture of killed B. bronchiseptica and P. multocida bacteria, combined with recombinant proteins containing the C- and N-termini of PMT, was emulsified using two different adjuvants (ISA-15A and carbopol 971). The efficacy of these two vaccines was evaluated in a mouse model. Balb/C mice were immunized twice at a 14-day interval. Two weeks after the secondary immunization, blood samples were collected and the mice were challenged with toxigenic P. multocida. Thirty-five days later, the mice were euthanized, blood and tissue samples were collected. Compared with mice inoculated with vaccine emulsified with ISA-15A, higher titers of SN (1:64) and significantly increased levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-17A were observed in mice inoculated with vaccine emulsified with the carbopol 971P. Especially, mice immunized with vaccine emulsified with the carbopol 971P had no detectable pathological changes in snouts or organs after challenge. The results demonstrated that carbopol adjuvanted vaccine provides good protection against PAR and P. multocida infection which can induce robust humoral and cell-mediated responses. We conclude that the carbopol adjuvanted vaccine is a good candidate for PAR prevention.