Vaccination against Infectious Bronchitis (IB)
Vaccination is the backbone of Infectious Bronchitis (IB) control.
Two types of vaccine are used:
- Live vaccines (attenuated viruses).
- Inactivated vaccines (killed viruses), usually formulated in an oil emulsion adjuvant.
Massachusetts serotype of IBV
The Massachusetts serotype was originally described in 1941, and is considered the classical IBV type. Vaccines based on this serotype provide a fairly broad spectrum of protection against other serotypes.
Vaccine developments
New developments in the field of IB vaccines include spike swapping. The concept consists of swapping part of the spike (S) protein of one IB virus with that of another serotype. Vaccination results in immunization against both types of viruses. This technology may give hope for improved IB control in the future.