Investigating the Efficacy of a Canine Rabies Vaccine Following Storage Outside of the Cold-Chain in a Passive Cooling Device



Lugelo, Ahmed, Hampson, Katie, Czupryna, Anna, Bigambo, Machunde, McElhinney, Lorraine M ORCID: 0000-0002-6022-348X, Marston, Denise A, Kazwala, Rudovick and Lankester, Felix
(2021) Investigating the Efficacy of a Canine Rabies Vaccine Following Storage Outside of the Cold-Chain in a Passive Cooling Device. FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE, 8. 728271-.

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Abstract

<b>Background:</b> Thermostable vaccines greatly improved the reach and impact of large-scale programmes to eliminate infectious diseases such as smallpox, polio, and rinderpest. A study from 2015 demonstrated that the potency of the Nobivac<sup>®</sup> Rabies vaccine was not impacted following experimental storage at 30°C for 3 months. Whether the vaccine would remain efficacious following storage under more natural, fluctuating temperature conditions remains unknown. We carried out a randomised controlled non-inferiority trial to compare serological responses in dogs following vaccination with doses stored under cold chain conditions with those stored within a locally made Passive Cooling Device ("Zeepot") under fluctuating temperature conditions. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> Nobivac<sup>®</sup> Rabies vaccine was stored under either cold-chain conditions or within the Zeepot for 2 months. Daily ambient temperatures and temperatures within the Zeepot were recorded every 3 h. Following storage, 412 domestic dogs were randomly assigned to receive either cold-chain or Zeepot stored Nobivac<sup>®</sup> Rabies vaccine. Baseline and day 28-post vaccination blood samples were collected. Serological analysis using the Fluorescent Antibody Virus Neutralisation assay was carried out with a threshold of 0.5 IU/ml to determine seroconversion. In addition, the impact of dog Body Condition Score, sex, and age on seroconversion was examined. <b>Results:</b> The serological response of dogs vaccinated using Nobivac<sup>®</sup> Rabies vaccine stored within the Zeepot was not inferior to the response of dogs vaccinated using cold-chain stored vaccine (z = 1.1, df = 313, <i>p</i>-value = 0.25). Indeed, the 28-day post-vaccination group geometric mean titre was 1.8 and 2.0 IU/ml for cold-chain vs. non-cold-chain storage, respectively. Moreover, the percentage of dogs that seroconverted in each arm was almost identical (85%). There was a positive linear trend between Body Condition Score (O.R. 2.2, 95% CI: 1.1-5.1) and seroconversion, suggesting dogs of poor condition may not respond as expected to vaccination. <b>Conclusions:</b> Our study demonstrated the potency of Nobivac<sup>®</sup> Rabies vaccine is not impacted following storage under elevated fluctuating temperatures within a Zeepot. These results have potentially exciting applications for scaling up mass dog vaccination programmes in low-and-middle income countries, particularly for hard-to-reach populations with limited access to power and cold-chain vaccine storage.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: dog-mediated rabies, mass vaccination, thermotolerance, passive cooling device, cold-chain, body condition score, vaccine storage
Divisions: Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 07 Feb 2022 16:52
Last Modified: 17 May 2023 15:36
DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.728271
Open Access URL: https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2021.728271
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URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3148444