Sources of variation in the uptake of a marker antibody by piglets

Abstract

1. Homologous antibodies toSalmonella pullorumwere produced by immunising pigs between 100 and 200 lb. live-weight.2. Standardised doses of antibody, extracted from whole serum after these pigs were slaughtered, were administered to 245 piglets by stomach tube during the first 24 hr. after birth.3. The marked variation in uptake of the marker antibody, determined by direct agglutination tests on the blood serum of the dosed pigs, was chiefly due to variation between litters. This variation was attributed to maternal effects, associated with agents secreted in varying quantities into colostrum. Concentration of antibody in the dose administered to piglets, time elapsing between birth and dosage and differences between sire families, were subsidiary causes of variation. Possible mechanisms influencing efficiency of antibody absorption were examined and discussed.