Humoral and Cellular Response of Pheasants Vaccinated against Newcastle Disease and Haemorrhagic Enteritis

Abstract

The purpose of the experiment was to define whether and to what extent can prophylactic vaccinations against Newcastle disease (ND) and haemorrhagic enteritis (HE) affect the humoral and cellular response in pheasants. The evaluation of humoral response was performed on a basis of agglutinin titre after administered antigen and the cellular immunity index was the delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) reaction. The pheasants were prophylactically vaccinated against Newcastle Disease (ND) on the 1 st , 28 th and 56 th day of life. Moreover, on the 49 th day of life, part of the birds was given in the drinking water a vaccine containing the HEV (Haemorrhagic Enteritis Virus). Fourteen days after the HEV vaccination, the birds were intravenously given 0.5 ml of the 10% SRBC (sheep red blood cells) suspension. Simultaneously with the SRBC administration the delayed hypersensitivity test was performed by intradermal administration of phytohaemagglutinin (PHA). It was shown that in pheasants vaccinated with NDV and additionally with HEV, the specific agglutinin anti-SRBC titre was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than in birds vaccinated against ND only. It also appeared that, the antibodies resistant to 2-mercaptoethanol were 43% of the total pool of specific anti-SRBC antibodies in the NDV vaccinated birds, whereas in birds vaccinated also with HEV they were 75%. No significant differences were found in the DTH test. Only in the HEV vaccinated pheasants the tendency to increase the wing index value was noted. The results confirm the observations concerning immunosuppressive effects of simultaneous vaccinations. They also indicate that overloading the pheasants with many antigens (ND and HEV vaccination) may weaken the humoral response to administered SRBC. HEV vaccination, NDV vaccination, anti-SRBC antibody titre, delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH), pheasantsThe main role of the immune system is to distinguish between what is its own and what is foreign and to eliminate any threat that may impair homeostasis. The threat is recognized much faster when the factor causing it is known. This knowledge has been used in prevention of animal infectious diseases for years, hence, the use of vaccines containing attenuated pathogenic antigens (Ahmad and Sharma 1993;Pierson and Fitzgerald 2003). The rate and quality of the response depend on animal species and individual cases. In birds, this is influenced by numerous factors, mainly genetic, resulting from natural selection or breeding conditions provided (Kunze et al. 1996;Boa-Amponsem et al. 1999; Talebi et al. 2005). Practically, the key role is attributed to environmental conditions, understood in a very broad sense. As has been shown, the transfer of wild animals into any housing system brings about the threat of increased susceptibility to bacterial and viral diseases. According to many researchers, the increased susceptibility of birds to infectious diseases is an effect of various immunosuppressors (Dohms and Metz

Impact of Prebiotics and Synbiotics Administered in ovo on the Immune Response against Experimental Antigens in Chicken Broilers

“…The cutaneous hypersensitivity to T-cell mitogen (phytohemagglutinin, PHA) was evaluated according to Kean and Lamont [32], as modified by Graczyk et al [33]. On D7, D21, and D35, eight chickens from each of the five groups were randomly selected and injected with 100 µg PHA (Sigma) dissolved in 100 µL PBS at pH 7.2.…”

Radial Segmentation of Blood Lymphocytes Nuclei in Pheasants Vaccinated against Newcastle Disease and Haemorrhagic Enteritis

“…The increase of RS+ lymphocytes in birds vaccinated with HEV suggests complex immunosuppressive mechanism of a vaccine virus. The vaccine possesses an immunosuppressive function on specific agglutinin production in pheasants, which was described in a previous study (Graczyk et al 2006). Because the ability to form RS was examined on the 21 st day after HEV vaccination and on the 7 th day after SRBC administration, one may suspect that changes in the percentage of RS+ cells, together with a decreased level of antibodies, were the result of reactivity changes of the cells, taking place in the course of the antigenic response.…”

Seroprevalences of specific antibodies against avian pathogens in free-ranging ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) in Northwestern Germany

“…The combination of the mentioned factors might influence the strength and resistance of free-ranging pheasants and the detected increase of seroconversion of specific antibodies in this study shows the spread of pathogens over the study area. According to many different studies, the enhanced susceptibility of birds to infectious diseases is an effect of various immunosuppressors [ 56 – 58 ]. In conclusion, we consider the detected antibodies against important infectious diseases in non- vaccinated free-ranging pheasants to be a further cofactor of a multivariate process in population decline.…”