Immunological profiles of Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle infested with the cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus

Piper, E.K., Jonsson, N.N. , Gondro, C., Lew-Tabor, A. ., Moolhuijzen, P., Vance, M.E. and Jackson, L.A. (2009) Immunological profiles of Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle infested with the cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus. Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, 16(7), pp. 1074-1086. (doi: 10.1128/CVI.00157-09)

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Abstract

The cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, is a major threat to the improvement of cattle production in tropical and subtropical countries worldwide. Bos indicus cattle are naturally more resistant to infestation with the cattle tick than are Bos taurus breeds, although considerable variation in resistance occurs within and between breeds. It is not known which genes contribute to the resistant phenotype, nor have immune parameters involved in resistance to R. microplus been fully described for the bovine host. This study was undertaken to determine whether selected cellular and antibody parameters of the peripheral circulation differed between tick-resistant Bos indicus and tick-susceptible Bos taurus cattle following a period of tick infestations. This study demonstrated significant differences between the two breeds with respect to the percentage of cellular subsets comprising the peripheral blood mononuclear cell population, cytokine expression by peripheral blood leukocytes, and levels of tick-specific immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) antibodies measured in the peripheral circulation. In addition to these parameters, the Affymetrix bovine genome microarray was used to analyze gene expression by peripheral blood leukocytes of these animals. The results demonstrate that the Bos indicus cattle developed a stabilized T-cell-mediated response to tick infestation evidenced by their cellular profile and leukocyte cytokine spectrum. The Bos taurus cattle demonstrated cellular and gene expression profiles consistent with a sustained innate, inflammatory response to infestation, although high tick-specific IgG1 titers suggest that these animals have also developed a T-cell response to infestation.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Jonsson, Professor Nicholas
Authors: Piper, E.K., Jonsson, N.N., Gondro, C., Lew-Tabor, A. ., Moolhuijzen, P., Vance, M.E., and Jackson, L.A.
Subjects:Q Science > QR Microbiology > QR180 Immunology
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
Journal Name:Clinical and Vaccine Immunology
ISSN:1556-6811
Published Online:27 May 2009
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