GtxA is a virulence factor that promotes a Th2-like response during Gallibacterium anatis infection in laying hens
Abstract
GtxA, a leukotoxic RTX-toxin, has been proposed a main virulence factor of Gallibacterium anatis. To evaluate the impact of GtxA during infection, we experimentally infected laying hens with a G. anatis wild-type (WT) strain and its isogenic gtxA deletion mutant (ΔgtxA), respectively, and monitored the birds during a 6 day period. Birds inoculated with ΔgtxA had significantly reduced gross lesions and microscopic changes compared to the birds inoculated with the WT strain. To assess the host response further, we quantified the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and apoptosis genes by RT-qPCR. In the ovarian tissue, the expression levels of IL-4 and TNF-α were significantly lower in the ΔgtxA group compared to the WT group, while IL-6 and IL-10 levels appeared similar in the two groups. In the spleen tissue of ΔgtxA infected chickens, IL-4 expression was also lower compared to the WT infected chickens. The results indicated that GtxA plays a key role in an acute cytokine-mediated Th2-like response against G. anatis infection in the ovary tissue. The pro-inflammatory response in the ovary tissue of birds inoculated with ΔgtxA mutant was thus significantly lower than the wild-type response. This was, at least partly, support...Continue Reading
References
In vitro adherence and invasion of primary chicken oviduct epithelial cells by Gallibacterium anatis
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Apoptosis
Apoptosis is a specific process that leads to programmed cell death through the activation of an evolutionary conserved intracellular pathway leading to pathognomic cellular changes distinct from cellular necrosis