Harness the full potential of your BRD vaccine with the right adjuvant

WAUPUN, Wis. — Bovine respiratory disease is one of the greatest threats to young calves and gaining protection through vaccines isn’t always straightforward.

Maternal antibodies, passed through colostrum, can block some vaccines from boosting immunity.

The key to overcoming that hurdle? Choosing a vaccine with the right adjuvant.

“Years ago, vaccine response was so variable in young calves,” said Curt Vlietstra, veterinarian at Boehringer Ingelheim. “At the time, we didn’t know if their immune system simply wasn’t ready, or if there was a problem with the vaccines.

“With the research we have now, we understand that the majority of interference comes from maternal antibodies that are still present in the calf at the time of vaccination.”

Passed down from the cow via colostrum, maternal antibodies are not only a calf’s first line of defense against disease, but they also have the tendency to neutralize vaccines.

Those maternal antibodies naturally wane when the calf is between two and six months of age.

As this maternal immunity dwindles, vaccination becomes critical in boosting and building calf immunity. The largest challenge in bridging these two forms of immunity is timing.

Chris Chase, a professor in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University, said finding a vaccine with the right adjuvant can eliminate this guessing game.

Essential Elements

Adjuvants, although often overlooked, can determine whether a calf successfully develops a robust, lasting immune response, or remains vulnerable to BRD pressure.

They work by drawing immune cells to the injection site and helping the calf’s body recognize and remember the vaccine. Some adjuvants also slow the release of the vaccine, giving the immune system more time to respond.

“With the types of adjuvants we have now, we can get strong, long-lasting immune responses, even in calves with maternal antibodies,” Chase said.

“Although, just because a vaccine label says ‘adjuvanted’ doesn’t mean it offers the protection we need. It’s important that we ask what kind of adjuvant it is and what it’s proven to do.”

Over the last few decades, peer-reviewed studies and fieldwork have shown that PYRAMID vaccines can succeed, even in the face of maternal immunity, thanks to its unique adjuvant, METASTIM.

Specifically designed to address the challenges of early calfhood vaccination, the dual-phase technology of the METASTIM adjuvant can stimulate a balanced, robust immune response in calves as young as 30 days of age.

“Historically, it was accepted as fact that maternal antibodies would block the injectable vaccine,” Vlietstra said. “Now we know METASTIM works alongside the preexisting antibodies, not against them.”

Systemic Immunity

Another key factor in vaccine selection is delivery method. For a time, intranasal vaccines were thought to be the only effective option to protect young calves against BRD.

While intranasal vaccines can offer local immunity for calves at risk of BRD exposure soon after birth, some may miss the opportunity to stimulate robust, systemic immunity.

While local immunity helps block infection right where it starts — which is usually in the respiratory tract with BRD — systemic immunity is what builds broad, long-lasting protection, by training the calf’s entire immune system to respond.

When calves encounter BRD pathogens weeks or even months after vaccination, a strong systemic immune response helps them recognize and fight off infection more effectively, reducing severity of disease and its long-term impact on health and performance.

“In some ways, we’ve become very reliant on intranasals,” Vlietstra said. “I’ve seen protocols that say, ‘This calf may not respond to an injectable, so let’s give another intranasal.’ That choice ends up potentially delaying systemic protection.”

Injectable vaccines with the right adjuvant have been proven to stimulate both local immunity in the respiratory tract and systemic immunity that circulates in the bloodstream.

Correct Timing

“There are plenty of producers and veterinarians who have firsthand experience of vaccines not working,” Vlietstra said. “If we’re not seeing results, it’s time to evaluate how we’re using the product and when.”

It’s common to schedule vaccination alongside other times calves are being worked, like weaning or transportation.

While this may save labor and time up front, vaccinating calves during other stressful events can limit immune response.

“If cattle have had a long truck ride, ideally, we’d let them unload and rest for 24 to 48 hours before we vaccinate,” Chase said.

“I know not all operations have the resources to do this due to labor constraints, but water and rest time after a stressful event will set cattle up for a better immune response.”

To get the most of any vaccination program, good animal handling, husbandry and biosecurity protocols play a role in preventing and controlling BRD.

By staying on top of health management and using products according to label, vaccines are more likely to capture desired results.

“The world’s best vaccine is not going to overcome overwhelming challenges,” Chase said.