FAILURE OF RB51 AS A CALFHOOD BISON VACCINE AGAINST BRUCELLOSIS

摘要

Brucella abortus is a Gram negative, facultative intracellular pathogen that causes disease in man and animals. The primary hosts for B. abortus axe cattle, bison and elk. With the eventual eradication of this disease in the U.S. domestic cattle herds, the bison and elk of the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) will remain the last natural reservoir of brucellosis. Interagency negotiations culminating in the revised Yellowstone Bison Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement have identified vaccination as one of the primary means of managing brucellosis in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) bison. Vaccination will be used when a safe, effective, and deliverable Bruce/lavacclne for bison is available. Completed research has found that B. abortusstxam RB51, which is the USDA/APHIS/VS licensed brucellosis vaccine for cattle, is safe in bison calves, pregnant bison, and not likely to harm non-target species. However, RB51 has not been evaluated for efficacy in significant numbers of calfhood-vaccinated bison. Since vaccination is included in several possible scenarios in management plans for the control of brucellosis in bison the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA), data on the efficacy of RB51 is critical for wildlife managers to make appropriate decisions for managing brucellosis in YNP bison. The data generated will provide for proper estimates of the following: cost/benefit ratios of conducting various vaccination programs; an estimate of the likelihood of the reductions of risk of transmission todomestic livestock; and the amount of protection that would be provided to bison vaccinated with RB51 against exposure to virulent B. abortus.