title: Acute-phase responses vary with pathogen identity in house sparrows (Passer domesticus).
abstract: Pathogens may induce different immune responses in hosts contingent on pathogen characteristics, host characteristics, or interactions between the two. We investigated whether the broadly effective acute-phase response (APR), a whole body immune response that occurs in response to constitutive immune receptor activation and includes fever, secretion of immune peptides, and sickness behaviors such as anorexia and lethargy, varies with pathogen identity in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). Birds were challenged with a subcutaneous injection of either a glucan at 0.7 mg/kg (to simulate fungal infection), a synthetic double-stranded RNA at 25 mg/kg (to simulate viral infection), or LPS at 1 mg/kg (to simulate a gram-negative bacterial infection), and then body mass, core body temperature changes, sickness behaviors, and secretion of an acute-phase protein, haptoglobin, were compared. Despite using what are moderate-to-high pyrogen doses for other vertebrates, only house sparrows challenged with LPS showed measurable APRs. Febrile, behavioral, and physiological responses to fungal and viral mimetics had minimal effects.
authors.affiliation: University of South Florida, Department of Integrative Biology, Tampa, Florida, USA. ccoon@mail.usf.edu
authors.forename: Courtney A C
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Coon
authors.forename: Robin W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Warne
authors.forename: Lynn B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D000209:Acute-Phase Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D000210:Acute-Phase Reaction / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000502:physiology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005936:Glucans / Q000009:adverse effects; D006242:Haptoglobins / Q000378:metabolism; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000009:adverse effects; D011749:Pyrogens / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012330:RNA, Double-Stranded / Q000009:adverse effects; D046370:Sparrows / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D000209:Acute-Phase Proteins; D005936:Glucans; D006242:Haptoglobins; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D011749:Pyrogens; D012330:RNA, Double-Stranded