title: Cloning, expression and immunoassay detection of ferret IFN-gamma.
abstract: Ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) develop symptoms upon influenza infection that resemble those of humans, including sneezing, body temperature variation and weight loss. Highly pathogenic strains of influenza A, such as H5N1, have the capacity to cause severe illness or death in ferrets. The use of ferrets as a model of influenza infection is currently limited by a lack of species-specific immunological reagents. Interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) plays a key role in the development of innate and adaptive immunity and the regulation of Th1-type immune responses. Here we describe the cloning of the full-length cDNA for ferret IFN-gamma. Multiple sequence alignment of the predicted amino acid sequence with those of other species indicates that the predicted ferret protein shares the highest identity with Eurasian badger IFN-gamma. We raised two hybridoma clones expressing monoclonal antibodies against recombinant ferret IFN-gamma capable of detecting IFN-gamma protein derived from mitogen-stimulated ferret PBMCs by immunoblotting, ELISA and ELISPOT assay. Finally, an ELISA utilizing the ferret-specific antibodies detected elevated levels of IFN-gamma in serum samples from H3N2 influenza A-infected ferrets.
authors.affiliation: Division of Experimental Therapeutics, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Atsuo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ochi
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Danesh
authors.forename: Charit
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Seneviratne
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Banner
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Devries
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rowe
authors.forename: Luoling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Longsi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ran
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Czub
authors.forename: Steven E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Bosinger
authors.forename: Mark J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.forename: Cheryl M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kelvin
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D001483:Base Sequence; D019556:COS Cells; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005289:Ferrets / Q000276:immunology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D007371:Interferon-gamma