title: Efficacy of Eimeria tenella rhomboid-like protein as a subunit vaccine in protective immunity against homologous challenge.
abstract: The immune responses and protective efficacy against homologous challenge in chickens elicited by recombinant proteins of a rhomboid-like gene (ETRHO1) from Eimeria tenella was investigated in the present study. When chickens were immunized with the recombinant rhomboid antigen, specific antibody was generated by ELISA assay. In comparison with the PBS group, the expression levels of interleukin-2, interferon-γ, as well as the percentages of CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ cells in the group immunized with the recombinant rhomboid proteins were significantly increased (p < 0.01, p < 0.05, and p < 0.05, respectively). These results suggest that rhomboid was capable of eliciting humoral and cell-mediated immunity response in birds. Challenge experiments demonstrated that the recombinant rhomboid protein could provide chickens with a protection rate around 77.3%. Numbers of oocysts and cecal lesion from chickens in the group immunized with recombinant rhomboid proteins decreased significantly, and the body weight increased significantly when compared with chickens in the PBS group (p < 0.05). These results suggested that the recombinant rhomboid antigen was able to impart partial protection against homologous challenge in chicken and could be a potential candidate for an E. tenella vaccine development.
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Jilin University, 5333 Xian Road, 130062 Changchun, Jilin, China.
authors.forename: Jianhua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Pengtao
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Xichen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D002645:Chickens; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary*; D016786:Eimeria tenella / Q000276:immunology* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D008297:Male; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D016052:Protozoan Vaccines / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D016052:Protozoan Vaccines; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit