Protein-energy malnutrition alters IgA responses to rotavirus vaccination and infection but does not impair vaccine efficacy in mice.

Background: Conflicting evidence links malnutrition to the reduced efficacy of rotavirus vaccines in developing countries, where diarrhea and undernutrition remain leading causes of child deaths. Here, we adapted mouse models of rotavirus vaccination (rhesus rotavirus, RRV), rotavirus infection (EDIM), and protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) to test the hypothesis that undernutrition reduces rotavirus vaccine immunogenicity and efficacy.

Methods: We randomized wild type Balb/C dams with 3-day-old pups to a control diet (CD) or an isocaloric, multideficient regional basic diet (RBD) that produces PEM.