Quantification and phenotypic characterisation of peripheral IFN-γ producing leucocytes in chickens vaccinated against Newcastle disease.

The aim of this study was to optimise and evaluate an intracellular cytokine staining (ICS) assay for assessment of T cell IFN-γ responses in chickens vaccinated against Newcastle disease (ND). We aimed to validate currently available antibodies to chicken IFN-γ using transfected CHO cells. Moreover, this ICS assay was evaluated for use to detect mitogen and antigen induced IFN-γ production in chicken peripheral blood leucocytes.

Comparison of growth performance and immune parameters of three commercial chicken lines used in organic production.

Owing to the higher demands for avoiding medication and antibiotics, health status of the production animals plays an important role in the poultry industry, especially in organic poultry systems. Immunity plays a major role in keeping the host free from disease, and it is evident that the host's genetic make-up influences immunity and disease resistance/susceptibility in chickens. Previously, breeding strategies aimed at selection for resistance against specific diseases with the risk of creating less disease resistance against other pathogens.

Detection of Avian Antigen-Specific T Cells Induced by Viral Vaccines.

Live attenuated viral vaccines are widely used in commercial poultry production, but the development of new effective inactivated/subunit vaccines is needed. Studies of avian antigen-specific T cells are primarily based on analyses ex vivo after activating the cells with recall antigen. There is a particular interest in developing robust high-throughput assays as chicken vaccine trials usually comprise many individuals.

Broilers with low serum Mannose-binding Lectin show increased fecal shedding of Salmonella enterica serovar Montevideo.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) is a key molecule in innate immunity. MBL binds to carbohydrates on the surface of pathogens, initiating the complement system via the lectin-dependent pathway or facilitates opsonophagocytosis. In vivo studies using inbred chicken lines differing in MBL serum concentration indicate that chicken MBL affects Salmonella resistance; further studies are imperative in conventional broiler chickens.

RNA sequencing-based analysis of the spleen transcriptome following infectious bronchitis virus infection of chickens selected for different mannose-binding lectin serum concentrations.

Background: Avian infectious bronchitis is a highly contagious disease of the upper-respiratory tract caused by infectious bronchitis virus (IBV). Understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in the interaction between innate and adaptive immune responses to IBV infection is a crucial element for further improvements in strategies to control IB. To this end, two chicken lines, selected for high (L10H line) and low (L10L line) serum concentration of mannose-binding lectin (MBL) were studied.

Wild boars from Sweden, Austria, the Czech Republic and Japan possess intact mannose-binding lectin 2 (MBL2) genes.

The two-nucleotide deletion recently detected in the mannose-binding lectin 2 gene in purebred and crossbred domestic pigs was not found among 68 wild boars representing 4 populations from Europe and Asia. This suggests that the deletion is a result of breeding and/or genetic drift/bottle necks.

CD107a as a marker of activation in chicken cytotoxic T cells.

The study aimed to evaluate cell surface mobilisation of CD107a as a general activation marker on chicken cytotoxic T cells (CTL). Experiments comprised establishment of an in vitro model for activation-induced CD107a mobilisation and design of a marker panel for the detection of CD107a mobilisation on chicken CTL isolated from different tissues. Moreover, CD107a mobilisation was analysed on CTL isolated from airways of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV)-infected birds direct ex vivo and upon in vitro stimulation.

Annotation and genetic diversity of the chicken collagenous lectins.

Collectins and ficolins are multimeric proteins present in various tissues and are actively involved in innate immune responses. In chickens, six different collagenous lectins have been characterized so far: mannose-binding lectin (MBL), surfactant protein A (SP-A), collectin 10 (COLEC10), collectin 11 (COLEC11), collectin 12 (COLEC12), lung lectin (LL) and one ficolin (FCN). However, the structural and functional features of the chicken collectins and ficolin are still not fully understood.

Immune gene expression in the spleen of chickens experimentally infected with Ascaridia galli.

Ascaridia galli is a gastrointestinal nematode infecting chickens. Chickens kept in alternative rearing systems or at free-range experience increased risk for infection with resulting high prevalences. A.

Chicken mannose-binding lectin function in relation to antibacterial activity towards Salmonella enterica.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) is a C-type serum lectin of importance in innate immunity. Low serum concentrations of MBL have been associated with greater susceptibility to infections. In this study, binding of purified chicken MBL (cMBL) to Salmonella enterica subsp.

The consequence of low mannose-binding lectin plasma concentration in relation to susceptibility to Salmonella Infantis in chickens.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) is a key protein in innate immunity. MBL binds to carbohydrates on the surface of pathogens, where it initiates complement activation via the lectin-dependent pathway or facilitates opsonophagocytosis. In vitro studies have shown that human MBL is able to bind to Salmonella, but knowledge in relation to chicken MBL and Salmonella is lacking.

Cytokine gene expression profiles in chicken spleen and intestinal tissues during Ascaridia galli infection.

In the poultry production industry, chickens with access to outdoor areas are exposed to a wide range of parasites e.g. the helminth Ascaridia galli.

Characterization of cellular and humoral immune responses after IBV infection in chicken lines differing in MBL serum concentration.

Chickens from two inbred lines selected for high (L10H) or low (L10L) mannose-binding lectin (MBL) serum concentrations were infected with infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), and innate as well as adaptive immunological parameters were measured throughout the experimental period. Chickens with high MBL serum concentrations were found to have less viral load in the trachea than chickens with low MBL serum concentrations indicating that these chickens were less severely affected by the infection. This study is the first to show that MBL expression is present in the lungs of healthy chickens and that the expression is upregulated at days 3 postinfection (p.

Transcription efficiency of different chicken mannose-binding lectin promoter alleles.

The serum collectin mannose-binding lectin (MBL) plays a major role in innate immunity by activation of the lectin complement pathway or by acting as an opsonin. The serum levels of human and animal MBL are associated with susceptibility to a wide range of infections, and the variation of MBL in serum is genetically determined. In the chicken, 14 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have so far been found in the MBL promoter region.

Acquisition of resistance after continuous infection with in chickens.

Acquired resistance against infection was studied in seventy-two 18-week-old white Leghorn chickens allocated to six groups (G1-G6). In order to understand the population dynamics following trickle-infection (100 eggs per chicken twice weekly), chickens of subgroups of G1 were necropsied 3 days after 1, 6 or 12 inoculations (G1A, G1B and G1C respectively), while G2-G4 were inoculated for 6 weeks. G2 was necropsied 4 weeks after the last inoculation.

A two-nucleotide deletion renders the mannose-binding lectin 2 (MBL2) gene nonfunctional in Danish Landrace and Duroc pigs.

The mannose-binding lectins (MBLs) are central components of innate immunity, facilitating phagocytosis and inducing the lectin activation pathway of the complement system. Previously, it has been found that certain single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in porcine MBL1 and MBL2 (pMBL1, pMBL2) affect mRNA expression, serum concentration, and susceptibility to disease, but the combinatory effect of pMBL1 and pMBL2 genotypes needs further elucidation. In the present study, pMBL1 and pMBL2 alleles, combined pMBL haplotypes, and MBL-A concentration in serum were analyzed in purebred Landrace (N = 30) and Duroc (N = 10) pigs.

Adjuvant effects of mannose-binding lectin ligands on the immune response to infectious bronchitis vaccine in chickens with high or low serum mannose-binding lectin concentrations.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) plays a major role in the immune response as a soluble pattern-recognition receptor. MBL deficiency and susceptibility to different types of infections have been subject to extensive studies over the last decades. In humans and chickens, several studies have shown that MBL participates in the protection of hosts against virus infections.

Ascaridia galli infection influences the development of both humoral and cell-mediated immunity after Newcastle Disease vaccination in chickens.

Potent vaccine efficiency is crucial for disease control in both human and livestock vaccination programmes. Free range chickens and chickens with access to outdoor areas have a high risk of infection with parasites including Ascaridia galli, a gastrointestinal nematode with a potential influence on the immunological response to vaccination against other infectious diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether A.

No protection in chickens immunized by the oral or intra-muscular immunization route with Ascaridia galli soluble antigen.

In chickens, the nematode Ascaridia galli is found with prevalences of up to 100% causing economic losses to farmers. No avian nematode vaccines have yet been developed and detailed knowledge about the chicken immune response towards A. galli is therefore of great importance.

Chicken mannose-binding lectin (MBL) gene variants with influence on MBL serum concentrations.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) plays a major role in the innate immune defence by activating the lectin complement pathway or by acting as an opsonin. Two forms of MBL have been characterised from several species, but for humans and chickens, only one form of functional MBL has been described. The human MBL2 gene is highly polymorphic, and it causes varying MBL serum levels.

Comparison of parasite-specific immunoglobulin levels in two chicken lines during sustained infection with Ascaridia galli.

Increasingly large numbers of poultry are held in production systems with access to outdoor areas. In these systems intestinal helminths are found with flock prevalences of up to 100%. Helminth infections influence chicken health negatively, which is why the following investigation has been performed.

MBL1 genotypes in wild boar populations from Sweden, Austria, the Czech Republic, and Japan.

The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) G949T in the mannose-binding lectin ( MBL ) 1 gene has been associated with low MBL-A concentration in serum and detected at different frequencies in various European pig populations. However, the origin of this SNP is not known. Part of the MBL1 gene was sequenced in 12 wild boar/Large White crossbred pigs from the second backcross (BC 2 ) generation in a family material originating from two wild boar x Large White intercrosses.

Crosstalk between innate and adaptive immune responses to infectious bronchitis virus after vaccination and challenge of chickens varying in serum mannose-binding lectin concentrations.

Mannose-binding lectin (MBL), a C-type collectin with structural similarities to C1q, is an innate pattern-recognition molecule that is sequestered to sites of inflammation and infections. MBL selectively binds distinct chemical patterns, including carbohydrates expressed on all kinds of pathogens. The present study shows that serum MBL levels influence the ability of chickens to clear the respiratory tract of virus genomes after an infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) infection.

Effects of different antimicrobial treatments on serum acute phase responses and leucocyte counts in pigs after a primary and a secondary challenge infection with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae.

The susceptibility to an initial challenge and a re-challenge inoculation with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae was analysed in pigs that were treated with antimicrobials of different efficacies following the first exposure to A pleuropneumoniae. In brief, 30 nine-week-old specific pathogen-free pigs were allocated to five groups of six. After acclimatisation, four groups were inoculated with A pleuropneumoniae serotype 2.

Correlation in chicken between the marker LEI0258 alleles and Major Histocompatibility Complex sequences.

Background: The LEI0258 marker is located within the B region of the chicken Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC), and is surprisingly well associated with serology. Therefore, the correlation between the LEI0258 alleles and the MHC class I and the class II alleles at the level of sequences is worth investigating in chickens. Here we describe to which extent the LEI0258 alleles are associated with alleles of classical class I genes and non-classical class II genes, in reference animals as well as local breeds with unknown MHC haplotypes.