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ENADE Veterinary Immunology & Serology: practice questions

ENADE: Medicina Veterinária · Brazil · INEP

Original practice questions written to the published syllabus · not past papers
10worked here, free
45written to this exam in this subject
14syllabus units

What this subject covers

Innate and adaptive immunity, antibodies and complement, hypersensitivity, vaccines and the cold chain, and the serological tests used in diagnosis and surveillance.

In the exams: ICAR AICE-JRF core group 06; ICAR AIEEA-PG 13 (Microbiology); NAVLE health maintenance and prevention 35%

Where the 45 questions fall

How our questions for ENADE spread across the units of Veterinary Immunology & Serology. Difficulty: 14 easy, 27 medium, 4 hard.

Serological tests: ELISA and agglutination6
Hypersensitivity4
Serological tests: CFT, AGID and virus neutralisation4
Colostral immunity4
Immunopathology4
Adaptive immunity3
Immunoglobulins3
Vaccine types3
Adjuvants3
The vaccine cold chain3
Innate immunity2
Antigens and antibodies2
Complement2
The major histocompatibility complex2

10 practice questions, worked

Choose an answer, then open the working. Each explanation says why the right answer is right and why the others are not.

1 · Innate immunity · medium

A 3-year-old dairy cow has acute toxic mastitis. Which acute phase protein is most useful as a sensitive inflammatory marker in this species?

  1. C-reactive protein
  2. α1-acid glycoprotein
  3. Haptoglobin
  4. Albumin
Answer and working

C. Haptoglobin

In cattle haptoglobin and serum amyloid A are the major acute phase proteins, rising many-fold. C-reactive protein is the major one in dogs and pigs, not cattle; α1-acid glycoprotein is a marker in cats; albumin is a negative acute phase protein and falls.

Further reading: Tizard IR, Veterinary Immunology, 10th ed.

2 · Adaptive immunity · medium

Which transcription factor identifies regulatory T cells?

  1. T-bet
  2. GATA-3
  3. RORγt
  4. FoxP3
Answer and working

D. FoxP3

FoxP3 defines regulatory T cells. T-bet drives Th1, GATA-3 Th2 and RORγt Th17 differentiation; students often confuse the lineage-defining factors.

Further reading: Tizard IR, Veterinary Immunology, 10th ed.

3 · Antigens and antibodies · easy

The overall binding strength of a multivalent antibody to a multivalent antigen is called:

  1. Avidity
  2. Affinity
  3. Specificity
  4. Valency
Answer and working

A. Avidity

Avidity is the total strength of multivalent binding; affinity is the strength of a single binding site for a single epitope. Pentameric IgM has modest affinity but high avidity.

Further reading: Tizard IR, Veterinary Immunology, 10th ed.

4 · Hypersensitivity · medium

Purpura haemorrhagica in horses following Streptococcus equi infection is classified as a:

  1. Type III (immune complex) hypersensitivity
  2. Type I hypersensitivity
  3. Type II (cytotoxic) hypersensitivity against platelets
  4. Type IV hypersensitivity
Answer and working

A. Type III (immune complex) hypersensitivity

Purpura haemorrhagica is an immune-complex vasculitis involving streptococcal M protein and antibody deposited in vessel walls. It is not IgE-mediated and not primarily an antiplatelet reaction.

Further reading: Tizard IR, Veterinary Immunology, 10th ed.

5 · Hypersensitivity · hard

A dairy herd uses the comparative cervical tuberculin test. An animal shows a larger reaction at the avian PPD site than at the bovine site. The most defensible interpretation is:

  1. The animal is a confirmed M. bovis reactor
  2. The test is a type I reaction and should be read at 30 minutes
  3. Sensitisation by non-tuberculous mycobacteria or M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis is more likely than M. bovis infection; national rules set the exact classification
  4. The result proves the animal is free of all mycobacterial infection
Answer and working

C. Sensitisation by non-tuberculous mycobacteria or M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis is more likely than M. bovis infection; national rules set the exact classification

The comparative test separates M. bovis infection (bovine reaction exceeds avian) from sensitisation by other mycobacteria (avian exceeds bovine). The thresholds are set nationally. The test is type IV and is read at about 72 hours.

Further reading: WOAH Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals

6 · Vaccine types · medium

In a vaccine trial, the attack rate was 40% in unvaccinated calves and 8% in vaccinated calves. Vaccine efficacy is:

  1. 80%
  2. 32%
  3. 20%
  4. 5-fold
Answer and working

A. 80%

Efficacy = (ARU − ARV) ÷ ARU = (0.40 − 0.08) ÷ 0.40 = 0.80 = 80%. 32% is the absolute difference in percentage points, not efficacy; 20% is ARV ÷ ARU; '5-fold' is the relative risk inverted, not efficacy.

Further reading: Thrusfield M et al., Veterinary Epidemiology, 4th ed.

7 · The vaccine cold chain · medium

Why should ice packs be 'conditioned' before packing freeze-sensitive vaccines in a cold box?

  1. Conditioning sterilises the outside of the packs
  2. Conditioning makes the packs even colder, so they can keep the vaccine cool for longer in transit
  3. Packs straight from the freezer are well below 0 °C and can freeze vaccine touching them
  4. Unconditioned packs cannot be reused
Answer and working

C. Packs straight from the freezer are well below 0 °C and can freeze vaccine touching them

Conditioning means leaving frozen packs until the ice begins to melt and moves inside, so the pack is near 0 °C and will not freeze vaccines. It warms rather than cools the pack slightly.

Further reading: WHO guidance on vaccine temperature sensitivity and the Shake Test

8 · Serological tests: CFT, AGID and virus neutralisation · medium

A CFT result is reported as 'anticomplementary'. This means:

  1. The serum is strongly positive
  2. The serum destroyed complement even without antigen, so it cannot be read
  3. The serum contains no antibody
  4. The complement used was from the wrong species and failed to bind the antibody
Answer and working

B. The serum destroyed complement even without antigen, so it cannot be read

Anticomplementary sera (contamination, haemolysis, immune complexes, poor storage) consume complement in the control well without antigen, so neither positive nor negative can be concluded; a fresh sample or another test is needed.

Further reading: WOAH Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals

9 · Colostral immunity · hard

Puppies receive a series of core vaccine doses every 2–4 weeks until about 16 weeks of age or older mainly because:

  1. Maternal antibody blocks vaccination and wanes at an unpredictable age in each puppy
  2. Puppies cannot produce their own IgG until about 16 weeks, so earlier doses only prime
  3. Each dose covers a different virus
  4. Live vaccines lose virulence after each dose, so repeated boosting is needed
Answer and working

A. Maternal antibody blocks vaccination and wanes at an unpredictable age in each puppy

Maternal antibody neutralises vaccine virus while present; the age it falls below interfering levels varies between puppies, so repeated doses ensure one is given soon after it wanes. Puppies can make IgG much earlier.

Further reading: WSAVA Guidelines for the vaccination of dogs and cats, 2024

10 · Immunopathology · easy

Bovine leucocyte adhesion deficiency (BLAD) in Holstein cattle is due to a defect in:

  1. MHC class I
  2. Complement C3 (as in Brittany spaniels)
  3. CD18 (β2 integrin)
  4. Immunoglobulin heavy chain
Answer and working

C. CD18 (β2 integrin)

The CD18 defect stops neutrophils adhering to endothelium and leaving blood, so calves show persistent marked neutrophilia yet recurrent infections.

Further reading: Tizard IR, Veterinary Immunology, 10th ed.

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Read the subject

Veterinary Immunology & SerologyThe full study manual, free ENADEFormat, sections and how it has changed

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Veterinary Immunology & Serology for other exams

ICAR AICE-JRF/SRF · IndiaNational Veterinary Examination · JapanICAR AIEEA · IndiaNational Practising Veterinarian Qualification Examination · ChinaVeterinarian National Examination · South KoreaNational Licensure Examination for Veterinarians · NepalVeterinarian Licensure Examination · PhilippinesSAVC Registration Examination · South Africa

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