ASSESSING THE SAFETY OF LONG-ACTING OXYTETRACYCLINE ON IMMUNOLOGICAL PARAMETERS IN RATS THROUGH HAEMAGGLUTINATION TITRE

Abstract

Long-acting oxytetracycline is a broad-spectrum antibiotic used to treat respiratory and gastrointestinal infectious diseases in animals. This study aimed to evaluate the safety of long-acting oxytetracycline on haemagglutination titre (HA titre), an immunological parameter used to determine the humoral immune response in Wistar albino rats. Rats were given a low and high dose of long-acting oxytetracycline through intramuscular injection and their HA titre was studied. The study found no significant difference in the antibody titre in the rats given the antibiotic, suggesting that long-acting oxytetracycline does not affect the humoral or cell-mediated immune response in rats. The study concludes that the antibiotic is safe for use in veterinary medicine. This study highlights the importance of evaluating the safety of antibiotics used in veterinary medicine to ensure that they do not adversely impact animal health or human health through the antibiotic resistance pathway.