The poultry industry plays a crucial role in global food production, with chickens being the most widely consumed as a rich protein source. However, infectious diseases pose significant threats to poultry health, underscoring the need for rapid and accurate detection to enable timely intervention. In recent years, biosensors have emerged as essential tools to facilitate routine surveillance on poultry farms and rapid screening at slaughterhouses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVaccination has led to significant dismantling of infectious diseases worldwide. Since the dawn of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, there has been increased popularity in the usage and study of the mRNA vaccine platform. Here, we highlight fundamental knowledge on mRNA vaccine pharmacology, followed by the immunity conferred by innate sensing and adaptive responses resulting from exposure to the mRNA vaccine construct and encapsulation materials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn humans and mice, the induction of interleukin (IL)-17 expression enhances epithelial barrier integrity through the secretion of antimicrobial peptides (AMP), thereby improving antibacterial defense. However, it is unclear whether IL-17 has similar antibacterial effects in chickens by modulating the expression of AMPs, such as avian beta-defensins (also known as gallinacins) and cathelicidins. This study evaluated the in vivo effects of inoculating 20-day-old broiler chickens with two doses of a plasmid encoding chicken IL-17 (pCDNA3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMarek's disease (MD), caused by the Marek's disease virus, is a lymphoproliferative disease in chickens that can be controlled by vaccination. However, the current vaccines can limit tumor growth and death but not virus replication and transmission. The present study aimed to evaluate host responses following intramuscular injection of an mRNA vaccine encoding gB and pp38 proteins of the MDV within the first 36 h.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVaccination has proven to be an effective means of controlling pathogens in animals. Since the introduction of veterinary vaccines in the 19th century, several generations of vaccines have been introduced. These vaccines have had a positive impact on global animal health and production.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAvian influenza viruses (AIV), including the H9N2 subtype, pose a major threat to the poultry industry as well as to human health. Although vaccination provides a protective control measure, its effect on transmission remains uncertain in chickens. The objective of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of beta-propiolactone (BPL) whole inactivated H9N2 virus (WIV) vaccine either alone or in combination with CpG ODN 2007 (CpG), poly(I:C) or AddaVax™ (ADD) to prevent H9N2 AIV transmission in chickens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlterations in intestinal microbiota can modulate the developing avian intestinal immune system and, subsequently, may impact on resistance to enteric pathogens. The aim was to demonstrate that early life exposure to , could affect either susceptibility or resistance of broilers to necrotic enteritis (NE). NZ9000 () pre-treatment at 1, 7, 14 and 21 days of age (DOA) led to a significant decrease in NE lesion scores in infected chickens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMarek's disease is a contagious proliferative disease of chickens caused by an alphaherpesvirus called Marek's disease virus. A bivalent mRNA vaccine encoding MDV's glycoprotein-B and phosphoprotein-38 antigens was synthesized and encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles. Tumor incidence, lesion score, organ weight indices, MDV genome load and cytokine expression were used to evaluate protection and immunostimulatory effects of the tested mRNA vaccine after two challenge trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNecrotic enteritis is an important enteric disease of poultry that can be controlled with in-feed antibiotics. However, with the concerns over antimicrobial resistance, there is an increased interest in the use of alternatives. Probiotics are one of the alternatives that have gained considerable attention due to their antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe H9N2 subtype avian influenza virus (AIV) is a low pathogenic AIV that infects avian species and lead to huge economical losses in the poultry industry. The unique immunomodulatory properties of Retinoic acid (RA), an active component of vitamin A, highlights its potential to enhance chicken's resistance to infectious diseases and perhaps vaccine-induced immunity. Therefore, the present study evaluated the effects of in ovo supplementation of RA on the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of an inactivated avian influenza virus vaccine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe tumor microenvironment (TME) is generated by the cross-talk among tumor cells, immune system cells, and stromal cells. The TME generated by Marek's disease virus (MDV) is suggested to display an immunosuppressive milieu due to immune inhibitory molecules and cytokines which are possibly induced by MDV-transformed cells and regulatory T cells. Both anti-tumor and pro-tumor gamma delta (γδ) T cells are reported in human cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe host response to pathogenic microbes can lead to expression of interleukin (IL)-17, which has antimicrobial and anti-viral activity. However, relatively little is known about the basic biological role of chicken IL-17A against avian viruses, particularly against Marek's disease virus (MDV). We demonstrate that, following MDV infection, upregulation of IL-17A mRNA and an increase in the frequency of IL-17A+ T cells in the spleen occur compared to control chickens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransmission of H9N2 avian influenza virus (AIV) can occur in poultry by direct or indirect contact with infected individuals, aerosols, large droplets and fomites. The current study investigated the potential of H9N2 AIV transmission in chickens via a fecal route. Transmission was monitored by exposing naïve chickens to fecal material from H9N2 AIV-infected chickens (model A) and experimentally spiked feces (model B).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGamma delta (γδ) T cells are highly enriched in mucosal barrier sites including intestinal tissues where microbial infections and tumors often originate in mammals. Human γδ T cells recognize stress antigens and microbial signals via their T cell receptor (TCR), natural killer (NK) receptors, and pattern recognition receptors. However, little is known about antigens or ligands capable of stimulating chicken γδ T cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTissue resident immune system cells in the chicken intestine play a significant role in the protection against pathogens. However, very little is known about these cells. The current study was conducted to further characterize chicken intestinal immune system cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInfection with pathogenic viruses is often sensed by innate receptors such as Toll-Like Receptors (TLRs) which stimulate type I and III interferons (IFNs) responses, to generate an antiviral state within many cell types. To counteract these antiviral systems, many viruses, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), encode non-structural proteins (NSPs) that mediate immune evasion. Using an overexpression system in A549 cells, we demonstrated a significant increase ( ≤ 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMarek's disease (MD) vaccines reduce the incidence of MD but cannot control virus shedding. To develop new vaccines, it is essential to elucidate mechanisms of immunity to Marek's disease virus (MDV) infection. In this regard, gamma delta (γδ) T cells may play a significant role in prevention of viral spread and tumor surveillance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMarek's disease virus (MDV), the etiologic agent for Marek's disease (MD), causes a deadly lymphoproliferative disease in chickens. Causes of the well-documented association between genetically defined lines of chicken and resistance to MD remain unknown. Here, the frequencies of IFN-gamma producing and -specific T cell responses were determined in line N (B21 haplotype; MD-resistant) and line P2a (B19 haplotype, MD-susceptible) chickens after infection with vaccine and/or virulent (RB1B) strains of MDV using both standard and cultured chIFN-gamma ELISPOT assays.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNecrotic enteritis (NE), caused by Clostridium perfringens (CP), is one of the most common of poultry diseases, causing huge economic losses to the poultry industry. This review provides an overview of the pathogenesis of NE in chickens and of the interaction of CP with the host immune system. The roles of management, nutrition, probiotics, and vaccination in reducing the incidence and severity of NE in poultry flocks are also discussed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProbiotics Antimicrob Proteins
December 2022
Growth promoter antibiotics have been commonly used for the control of necrotic enteritis (NE) in broilers for decades. However, due to a ban on the use of these antibiotics, alternatives such as probiotics have been tested widely for NE control. The present study tested the efficacy of four different species of lactobacilli (two isolates of Lactobacillus johnsonii and one of Ligilactobacillus (L.
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