title: Maternal and foetal cytokine production in dams naturally and experimentally infected with Neospora caninum on gestation day 110.
abstract: In the present study, IFN-γ (Th1), IL-17A (Th17) and IL-4 (Th2) concentrations in response to concanavalin (ConA) and Neospora caninum antigen (Nc-1) stimulation were determined in cultures of cells from control uninfected (n=4), naturally N. caninum-infected (n=3) and experimentally N. caninum-infected (n=6) pregnant dams and their foetuses. Experimental animals were infected at 110days of gestation and euthanized 6weeks post-infection. In culture supernatants from the dams, significantly higher IFN-γ and IL-4 levels were found in the experimentally-infected animals compared to the control or naturally-infected dams. However, among the experimentally-infected dams no significant differences in IFN-γ production were observed regardless of the incidence of live or aborted/dead foetuses, though spleen cultures of dams carrying live foetuses showed the highest levels of IFN-γ. IL-17A production was very low and occasional in the dams infected with N. caninum and did not seem to be a major regulator of IFN-γ production in this model. Experimentally infected dams with live foetuses showed higher IL-4 levels and accordingly IFN-γ/IL-4 ratios were significantly lower than ratios recorded for cows with aborted/dead foetuses. In the infected foetuses of these dams, only spleen cultures showed high levels of IFN-γ and IL-4 after Nc-1 antigen and ConA stimulation, respectively. No IL-17A was detected in the foetuses. As conclusion, although we could not clearly relate a protective immune response against N. caninum abortion only to IFN-γ levels in cell cultures, our results highlight the important role of an inverse IFN-γ/IL-4 balance in conferring protection against abortion induced by this parasite.
authors.affiliation: Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain; Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries (IRTA), Campus UAB, CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Darwich
authors.affiliation: Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain; Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries (IRTA), Campus UAB, CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Departament de Produccio Animal, Agrotecnio Center, Universidad de Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Serrano-Pérez
authors.affiliation: Departament de Produccio Animal, Agrotecnio Center, Universidad de Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mur-Novales
authors.affiliation: Departament de Produccio Animal, Agrotecnio Center, Universidad de Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Garcia-Ispierto
authors.affiliation: SeFAS, UAB, Spain.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Cabezón
authors.affiliation: Departament de Produccio Animal, Agrotecnio Center, Universidad de Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: López-Gatius
authors.affiliation: Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain; Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries (IRTA), Campus UAB, CIP 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain. Electronic address: Sonia.Almeria@uab.cat.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Almería
mesh_terms: D000034:Abortion, Veterinary / Q000469:parasitology; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000469:parasitology*; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000662:veterinary*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000378:metabolism*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000276:immunology; D018688:Neospora; D011247:Pregnancy; D013154:Spleen
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines
keywords: Experimental and natural infection; IFN-γ, IL-17A and IL-4 levels; Mid-gestation; Neospora caninum; Pregnant dams; Viable and aborted foetuses