IntroductionThe diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis combined vaccine (DTaP) is a trivalent formulation containing acellular pertussis antigens, diphtheria toxoid, and tetanus toxoid, and provides simultaneous protection against pertussis, diphtheria, and tetanus. This study aimed to systematically evaluate the effects of repeated intramuscular administration of an adsorbed acellular diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (reduced-dose) combined vaccine (Tdacp) on gamete maturation, mating performance, fertility, and embryo-fetal development in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats, thereby providing experimental evidence for its reproductive safety.MethodsSexually mature SD rats were randomly assigned, stratified by sex and body weight into four groups: negative control, adjuvant control, low-dose, and high-dose, with 40 rats per group (20 males and 20 females).
Male and female rats were paired for mating according to group assignment and identification number. Animals received two intramuscular injections; the low-dose group received 0.25 mL/rat, whereas all other groups received 0.5 mL/rat.
Frontiers in Immunology published a clinical update in Infectious Disease on 26 May 2026.
The item focuses on Preclinical study on an adsorbed acellular diphtheria- tetanus-pertussis (reduced-dose) combined vaccine: evaluation of reproductive safety and immunogenicity.
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