Evaluation of efficacy of Vero cell-adapted, thermostable Newcastle disease vaccine in broilers

Abstract

The main theme of this project was to develop a Vero cell-adapted, thermostable NDV I-2 vaccine and evaluate its efficacy against challenge infection. For this purpose, serial passages of virus were done in Vero cell line up to 13 times and after each passage samples were subjected to heat treatment at 56°C for 40 min. After 13 passages, the virus was completely adapted on Vero cell line and cytopathic effects were observed, including syncytial formation, rounding, degeneration, and detachment of cells. Hemagglutination and infectivity titers showed that the virus was thermostable after each passages in Vero cell line. One-day-old broiler chicks (Group 1) were vaccinated orally with thermostable NDV I-2 vaccine. A commercially available thermolabile NDV LaSota was used in Group 2 used as positive control. NDV I-2 vaccine produced maximum % inhibition migration at d 6 (50%) as compared with LaSota ND vaccine (i.e., 32%). On encounter with virulent NDV I-2, 100% safety was accomplished in group 1 and 60% in case of group 2. All the birds in the control negative group had died. This study led to the conclusion that thermostable Vero cell adapted I-2 strain vaccine resulted in better immunization in broiler birds than obtained by the use of commercially available thermolabile vaccines.