Efficacy of an inactivated vaccine against clinical disease caused by canine coronavirus.

Canine Coronavirus (CCV) is a causative agent of diarrhea in dogs. The reproduction of severe clinical disease with experimental CCV infection has been difficult. We have recently developed a CCV challenge model which reproduced clinical signs of disease in susceptible dogs. The following study was designed to determine whether immunization with an inactivated CCV vaccine would protect dogs from clinical disease induced using this model. Dogs (n = 13) were vaccinated with an inactivated CCV vaccine. Vaccinates and controls (n = 5) were orally inoculated with virulent CCV virus and treated with dexamethasone on days 0, 2, 4, and 6 after virus challenge. Control dogs developed clinical signs including diarrhea, dehydration, anorexia, depression, and nasal and ocular discharge. Diarrhea was noted in 80% of the controls and 60% progressed to a severe watery or bloody diarrhea that persisted for multiple days. Conversely, only 2/13 (15%) vaccinates developed mild diarrhea and none developed bloody diarrhea. The control dogs averaged 10.8 days of diarrhea compared to 1.4 days for vaccinates over the 21 day observation period. In addition to reduced clinical signs, the number of days of virus shedding and the level of CCV in feces was different for controls (100% shed virus) and vaccinates (38% shed virus). This study demonstrates that vaccination with an inactivated CCV vaccine can significantly reduce not only viral replication, but the occurrence of clinical disease following a virulent CCV infection.