title: Cellular immune responses of cattle to Cowdria ruminantium.
abstract: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBM) from cattle immunised against Cowdria ruminantium infection (Heartwater), proliferated in vitro in the presence of either infected autologous endothelial cells pre-treated with T cell growth factors to induce MHC class II expression, or infected autologous monocytes. Proliferation was not observed in PBM cultured with a soluble extract of the agent, but PBM responded to two recombinant antigens of C. ruminantium, namely a 32 kDa (MAP1) and a 21 kDa antigen (MAP2). We hypothesize that infected endothelial cells and monocytes present Cowdria antigens to specific lymphocytes during infection and thereby play a role in the pathogenesis/immune response to the pathogen.
authors.affiliation: International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi, Kenya.
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Mwangi
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: McKeever
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Mahan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001428:Bacterial Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016995:Ehrlichia ruminantium / Q000276:immunology*; D006357:Heartwater Disease / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D001428:Bacterial Vaccines; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic