Evaluating two live-attenuated vaccines against serovar Reading in turkeys: reduced tissue colonization and cecal tonsil transcriptome responses.

Vaccines that cross-protect across serovars of () would be a beneficial intervention against emerging and persistent isolates of concern for the turkey industry. The 2017-2019 foodborne outbreak of serovar Reading (. Reading) revealed the need for effective control of this serovar in turkey production. This study evaluated two live-attenuated vaccines, an internally developed cross-protective vaccine and a commercially available vaccine, against an outbreak-associated strain of . Reading in turkeys. At 1 day and 3 weeks of age, male turkey poults were either mock-vaccinated with phosphate buffered saline (PBS) or given one of the vaccines by oral gavage (primary and booster) or aerosol spray (primary) then drinking water (booster). At 7 weeks of age, poults were challenged with 10 colony forming units (CFU) of . Reading; a mock-vaccinated group was mock-challenged with PBS. Colonization of the cecal contents and cecal tonsil was 1.5-3 log CFU/g lower in vaccinated birds than mock-vaccinated birds at 7 and/or 14 days post-inoculation (DPI). dissemination to the spleen was significantly reduced by both vaccines. Gene expression of intestinal transporters (such as and ) and tight junction proteins was significantly decreased in the turkey cecal tonsil transcriptome at 2 DPI with . Reading. Vaccination with either vaccine mitigated most cecal tonsil gene expression responses to . Reading challenge. Therefore, both the internally developed vaccine and commercial vaccine were cross-protective against colonization and dissemination, and both were able to limit transcriptional changes from challenge in intestinal health-related genes in the cecal tonsil, thereby providing vaccination efficacy and impact data against . Reading in turkeys.