Vitamin C supplementation improved the efficacy of foot-and-mouth disease vaccine

Abstract

Vitamin C (VC) is an essential micronutrient and plays important roles in various biological processes including immune responses. Vaccination can stimulate immune responses effectively for prevention of virual infection. Adequate VC intake is required for the immune system to function efficiently. In this study, we evaluated the biological function of VC on immune response to inactivated foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine. The C57BL/6 mice were injected intraperitoneally with different dose of VC daily following immunization with inactivated FMD vaccine. The results showed high dose of VC supplementation significantly increased IgG level. Similarly, high dose of VC supplementation enhanced Th2 and Th17 cellular immune responses and also increased MHCII expression on dendritic cells. Taken together, these data indicate that high dose of VC supplementation can modulate Th2 and Th17 cellular immune responses to inactivated FMD vaccine and manifest the necessity for effective vaccination.