Is. Aaberge et M. Lovik, THE ANTIBODY-RESPONSE TO SECONDARY IMMUNIZATION WITH PNEUMOCOCCAL POLYSACCHARIDES IN MICE, Scandinavian journal of immunology, 42(6), 1995, pp. 617-625
The benefit of re-immunization with pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccin
e is an important question in clinical practice. In an experimental mo
del, BALB/c and CBA/J mice were re-immunized s.c. with a 23-valent pne
umococcal polysaccharide vaccine at various time intervals after a fir
st immunization with the same vaccine. The antibody response after the
secondary immunization showed similar kinetics as after primary immun
ization, and was mainly an IgM antibody response. Re-immunization at 2
8 days or earlier induced a decrease in the serum antibody levels to t
he vaccine. Reimmunization at 120 days or later induced higher antibod
y levels than after the first immunization. Significant increases in a
ntibody levels to serotypes 1, 4, 7F and 19F out of six serotypes test
ed were observed. In CBA/J mice, but not in BALB/c mice, the dose used
for primary immunization appeared to influence the magnitude of the a
ntibody response to secondary immunization. Our results indicate that
the time interval between primary and secondary immunization is an imp
ortant determinant with regard to the magnitude of the antibody respon
se to re-immunization with pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine.