Importance of colostrum IgG antibodies level for prevention of infection with Cryptosporidium parvum in neonatal dairy calves

Abstract

A B S T R A C TCryptosporidiosis is one of the most common zoonosis worldwide, causing intestinal infection to both humans and livestock. The purpose of this study was to assess whether the level of anti-C. parvum IgG antibodies transferred through colostrum from dams to newborn calves impacts the susceptibility to cryptosporidiosis. A number of 50 dams and their healthy newborns were included in the study. Colostrum samples were collected within 12 h after birth and anti-C. parvum IgG antibody levels were determined by single radial immunodiffusion. The health condition of the newborns was daily monitored, and fecal samples were collected at first diarrheic episode of a calf. In all dams, the anti-C. parvum IgG antibody concentration in colostrum varied between 570 and 4070 mg/dl; in dams who gave birth to calves with diarrhea and were C. parvum-positive, the antibody concentration in colostrum varied between 680 and 3680 mg/dl (Table 1). The point-biserial correlation showed a negative correlation between the levels of anti-C. parvum antibodies and manifestation of clinical cryptosporidiosis (r=-0.425). Our findings highlight the importance of IgG levels in colostrum received by neonatal calves during their first day of life for prevention of C. parvum infection.

Causes of neonatal calf diarrhea and mortality in pasture-based dairy herds in Uruguay: a farm-matched case-control study

“…Currently, there are no commercially available vaccines for Cryptosporidium spp. ; however, it has been postulated that calves with an adequate immune status, acquired through colostrum, are less likely to shed this agent in feces [ 81 ] and to have clinical cryptosporidiosis [ 82 ]. Interestingly, in our study, the mean STP concentration was higher in Cryptosporidium spp.-negative (5.71 g/dl, n = 66) than -positive calves (5.47 g/dl, n = 29) (data no shown).…”

Assessment of Influential Factors for Scours Associated with Cryptosporidium sp., Rotavirus and Coronavirus in Calves from Argentinean Dairy Farms

“…infection [ 56 ], while other studies did not find an association regarding this practice and C. sp. infection [ 8 , 53 ], and others did find a protective association [ 57 , 58 ]. A possible explanation could be related to the fact that the farms that did not freeze colostrum were median and small farms, where the overcrowding could be lower (date not showed).…”