title: Kinetics of interleukin-2 production in chickens infected with Eimeria tenella.
abstract: Interleukin (IL)-2 is a major cytokine of cell-mediated immunity (CMI). Because chickens infected with Eimeria, the causative agent of coccidiosis, develop a robust cell-mediated response against the parasite, we measured IL-2 concentrations in vivo and in vitro during the course of primary and secondary experimental Eimeria tenella infections. IL-2 levels in serum and culture supernatants of spleen lymphocytes stimulated with mitogen or E. tenella sporozoites were significantly increased on day 7 post-primary infection compared with control group. This peak in IL-2 coincided with the time of maximum intestinal lesions as measured by cecum lesion scores. By contrast, during secondary infection highest IL-2 concentrations preceded intestinal lesions by 5 days (day 2 versus day 7, respectively). These results confirmed that IL-2 production is augmented during experimental coccidiosis and suggested that cellular immunity elicited during an anamnestic response to parasite reinfection is mediated, at least in part, by IL-2.
authors.affiliation: Parasite Biology, Epidemiology and Systematics Laboratory, Animal and Natural Resources Institute, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville MD 20705, USA.
authors.forename: Tadashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miyamoto
authors.forename: Wongi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Min
authors.forename: Hyun S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Lillehoj
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002432:Cecum / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002645:Chickens / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D016786:Eimeria tenella / Q000276:immunology; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000378:metabolism; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D007700:Kinetics; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D013154:Spleen / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D034101:Sporozoites / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D007376:Interleukin-2; D003208:Concanavalin A