The aim of this study was to identify common messenger molecules used in both
the immune and the neuroendocrine systems in birds, and to shed light on a cell type
within the bursa of Fabricius that has historically been postulated as a potential
neuroendocrine-immune link, the bursal secretory dendritic-like cells (BSDC). An
immunocytochemical approach was used to identify neuroendocrine cell populations in
the thymus, pituitary and bursa of Fabricius in the chicken. Molecular confirmation of
the neuroendocrine cell marker, chromogranin A (CgA) in the thymus tissue of the
chicken was reported. Previously the serine protease inhibitor, ovoinhibitor, was
localized in bursal follicles, specifically the cortico-medullary border region. The
presence of ovoinhibitor was identified and confirmed in the chicken pituitary by this
study. Continued focus on the neuroendocrine-immune interactions in chicken immune
tissue narrowed the study around the BSDC population. The BSDC are a component of
the stromal, non-lymphoid cellular environment of the bursa of Fabricius and are thought
to play a role in B-cell maturation and differentiation. They are located mainly along the
cortico-medullary border of the bursal follicles in the same area as the majority of the
ovoinhibitor-positive cell population. During attempts to isolate the BSDC population
by flow cytometry and laser capture microdissection, a cell culture method was
developed that enriched the BSDC population by 10-fold. This enriched population was
used to evaluate protein product secretion following lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge
and compared to in vivo challenge with live Salmonella. For the first time, up-regulation
of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-12 was documented in the chicken following in
vivo challenge. In addition, the gene expression of serine protease inhibitors was
markedly decreased in the adherent cell population following LPS stimulation. As a
result of this research a novel method for the enrichment of an adherent population,
including the BSDC, was developed, providing a valuable tool for the analysis of this
population during immune stimulation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/3972 |
| Date | 16 August 2006 |
| Creators | Oubre, Cherie Morgan |
| Contributors | Berghman, Luc R., Moyes, Rita Brown |
| Publisher | Texas A&M University |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Dissertation, text |
| Format | 2148539 bytes, electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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