Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine - Department of Microbiology

Rhodococcus equi, a Gram-positive facultative intracellular pathogen, is among the most widely recognized causes of pneumonia in foals. Several antimicrobial drugs are effective against R. equi in vitro; however, many of these agents are ineffective in vivo because of the capability of R. equi to survive and replicates in macrophages. The present study aimed to prepare R. equi-specific hyperimmune horse antiserum and to evaluate its therapeutic and prophylactic efficacy against R. equi infection. Four horses were immunized with a locally prepared formalin inactivated R. equi vaccine adjuvanted with mineral oil. Each of these horses was immunized with 3 doses of the prepared vaccine (3ml/ dose) at 2 weeks intervals. One week after the last vaccination dose, serum from immunized horses was collected by plasmapheresis. The measured titer of R. equi specific antibodies reached to 104 ELISA units/ml after 2 weeks from the primary immunization and up to 105 ELISA units/ml one week after the third immunization dose

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