Rev Inv Vet Perú 52 J. Rondón y R. Rosadio Rev Inv Vet Perú 2002; 13(1): 52-60 1 Práctica privada 2 Laboratorio de Microbiología y Parasitología, FMV-UNMSM. E-mail: rrosadio@terra.com.pe USO DE LA REV-1 EN EL CONTROL DE LA BRUCELOSIS OVINA EN UNA EMPRESA OVEJERA DEL PERÚ Juan Rondón E. 1 y Raúl Rosadio A. 2 Abstract In 1996, after a 5 year hiatus, the use of the Rev-1 vaccine was reintroduced to control ovine brucellosis (Brucella ovis) in a large sheep company of the central Peruvian Andes, and by the year 2000, 86.3% of the rams (3,284 of 3,804) and 100% of the young males (n=1,811) were vaccinated. During the shearing campaign for year 2000, testicles of the entire male breeding population (n=5,615) were examined manually and 320 blood samples (214 rams and 106 yearlings) were taken for AGID testing to determine the presence of Brucella ovis antibodies. Epididymitis lesions were found in 89.4 x 10,000 of the rams and 38.6 x 10,000 of the yearlings, compared to 817 x 10,000 for rams and 214 x 10,000 for yearlings prior to reintroduction of Rev-1 vaccination. The progressive reduction in epididymitis was directly related to vaccination. The level of infection was found 1,186.4 x 10,000 in 1996 decreasing to 531.2 x 10,000 in 2000, but infection levels remained high in the vaccinated population (635.8 x 10,000). Clinical expression of the disease was 38.5 x 10,000 in unvaccinated males compared to 97.4 x 10,000 in vaccinated animals, but infection rates were considerably lower in vaccinated (635.8 x 10,000) than in unvaccinated (1,219 x 10,000) males. These results clearly demonstrate the efficaciousness of Rev-1 in controlling epididymitis in rams. Combined use of the Rev-1 vaccine with periodic clinical examinations, annual serological tests and the elimination of all reactors is recommended, but vaccination alone at a national level would help in controlling this highly prevalent disease in the Peruvian sheep population. Key words: Brucella ovis, epididymitis, vaccination, Rev-1 Se evaluó el efecto de la vacuna Rev-1 en el control de la brucelosis ovina causado por Brucella ovis en una empresa lanar de la sierra central del Perú. El uso de esta vacuna fue reintroducida en 1996, después de un lapso de 5 años. Al momento de la evaluación, la empresa mantenía el 86.3% de carneros vacunados (3,284/3,804) y el 100% de carnerillos vacunados (n=1,811). La evaluación consistió en exámenes clínicos testiculares a toda la población de reproductores machos (n=5,615) durante la campaña de esquila del año 2000. Paralelamente, se evaluó niveles de infección en 320 muestras sanguíneas (214 de carneros y 106 de carnerillos), detectando anticuerpos específicos para la Brucella ovis mediante la prueba de inmunodifusión en gel de agarosa (AGID). Los exámenes testiculares revelaron prevalencias de lesiones de epididimitis en tasas de 89.4 x 10 mil en la población adulta (carneros) y 38.6 x 10 mil en la población de jóvenes (carnerillos). Resumen