title: Adjuvant effects of therapeutic glycolipids administered to a cohort of NKT cell-diverse pigs.
abstract: CD1d-restricted natural killer T (NKT) cells are a unique lymphocyte population that makes important contributions to host defense against numerous microbial pathogens. The powerful immunomodulatory effects of these cells can be exploited in mice by cognate antigens for multiple therapeutic purposes, including for protection from infectious diseases and as adjuvants to improve vaccines against microbial organisms. These applications have potential to treat and prevent infectious diseases in livestock species that express NKT cells, including pigs. In this study, immune tissues from commercial swine of mixed genetic background were compared for NKT cell frequency, cytokine secretion and subset ratios. Pigs were also injected with the model antigen hen-egg lysozyme (HEL) in conjunction with one of three glycosphingolipids, alpha-galactosylceramide (αGC), OCH and C-glycoside that selectively activate NKT cells, to assess the adjuvant potential of each. There was significant variation between individual pigs for all NKT cell parameters measured. The NKT cell agonists elicited HEL-specific immune responses of different quality, but only αGC increased the systemic concentration of NKT cells. Peripheral blood NKT cell frequency measured prior to treatment was a poor predictor of how individual animals responded to NKT cell therapy. However, our results show that although NKT cells vary considerably between pigs, there exists considerable potential to harness these cells to protect swine from infectious diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States.
authors.forename: Bianca L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Artiaga
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Immunology, and Laboratory Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States.
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Whitener
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States.
authors.forename: Charles R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Staples
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States. Electronic address: jdriver@ufl.edu.
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Driver
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D000833:Animals, Suckling; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry / Q000662:veterinary; D006017:Glycolipids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016014:Linear Models; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000276:immunology*; D009113:Muramidase / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000276:immunology; D055611:Natural Killer T-Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D013552:Swine / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D016207:Cytokines; D006017:Glycolipids; C421864:hen egg lysozyme; D009113:Muramidase
keywords: Adjuvant; Glycolipid antigens; NKT cells; Swine