Veterinary science is moving from bivalent to trivalent vaccines for pig farming

Today, vaccination is an integral part of the swine business, and although vaccine research and production is very complex and expensive, progress continues towards the development of multicomponent products. As Ed White reports in an article published on the Farmtario portal, a trivalent vaccine from Merck Animal HEALTH is currently being commercialized in the United States to control porcine circovirus (PCV2), Mycoplasma hyopneumonia and Lawsonia intracellularis. This will be the first trivalent vaccine of its kind on the market, and multiple studies were required to prove the effectiveness and working of the new combination. 

Dr. Brett O'Brien, a company representative, in an interview with a Farmtario journalist, explained the relevance of the development: the combination vaccine can reduce the number of injections in young pigs, reduce stress and reduce labor costs. “Porcine circovirus has plagued the North American swine industry for nearly two decades, crippling many farms even before the first vaccine became available. Lawsonia causes ileitis ( a disease with enteritis symptom complex) and is another common problem among young pigs. Mycoplasma is a well-known scourge in pig production and worries producers all over the world. Vaccines for these diseases improve healthpigs, but the need to give young pigs multiple injections can be a strain on both the pig’s immune system and the staff.” 

Dr. Scott Stellhic added that the circovirus has not stood still since its arrival in North America: “It has evolved to produce many dangerous strains. For much of the 2000s, PCV2a was a major concern, but by the end of the decade, PCV2b had supplanted it in clinical settings. In 2012, PCV2d was first discovered in the United States and soon became the dominant strain causing problems. In our case, the vaccine was developed to be resistant to all strains.”

Making trivalent vaccines is a huge undertaking , O'Brien said , given that current vaccines are designed to produce an immune response in one smaller dose and be less disruptive to pigs. To put this into perspective, compared to earlier versions, which were administered using a four-millimeter injection, the new drug requires a two-millimeter dose. The drug will first be available in the United States, then distributed in other countries.