title: Feliform carnivores have a distinguished constitutive innate immune response.
abstract: Determining the immunological phenotype of endangered and threatened populations is important to identify those vulnerable to novel pathogens. Among mammals, members of the order Carnivora are particularly threatened by diseases. We therefore examined the constitutive innate immune system, the first line of protection against invading microbes, of six free-ranging carnivore species; the black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas), the brown hyena (Hyena brunnea), the caracal (Caracal caracal), the cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), the leopard (Panthera pardus) and the lion (Panthera leo) using a bacterial killing assay. The differences in immune responses amongst the six species were independent of their foraging behaviour, body mass or social organisation but reflected their phylogenetic relatedness. The bacterial killing capacity of black-backed jackals, a member of the suborder Caniformia, followed the pattern established for a wide variety of vertebrates. In contrast, the five representatives of the suborder Feliformia demonstrated a killing capacity at least an order of magnitude higher than any species reported previously, with a particularly high capacity in caracals and cheetahs. Our results suggest that the immunocompetence of threatened felids such as the cheetah has been underestimated and its assessment ought to consider both innate and adaptive components of the immune system.
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany.
authors.forename: Sonja K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Heinrich
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany.
authors.forename: Bettina
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wachter
authors.affiliation: Bwabwata Ecological Institute, Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Zambezi, Namibia.
authors.forename: Ortwin H K
authors.initials: OH
authors.lastname: Aschenborn
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Thalwitzer
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany.
authors.forename: Jörg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Melzheimer
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany.
authors.forename: Heribert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hofer
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin 10315, Germany czirjak@izw-berlin.de.
authors.forename: Gábor Á
authors.initials: GÁ
authors.lastname: Czirják
keywords: Bacterial killing assay; Canids; Carnivores; Constitutive innate immunity; Felids