Analysis of Chicken T Cell-Mediated Responses on Thymus after Immune Stress

Zhenhu Jia, Yufang Cao, Yaju Xue, Fangxiang Li, Min Liu, Cai Zhang, Yufei Yang, Jiangyan Duan

College of Life Science, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen, China.

DOI: 10.4236/jibtva.2014.32003                

Abstract

In order to assess chicken T cell-mediated responses after immune stress, 200 two-week-old chickens were randomly divided into control group(C) and treatment groups (T₁ and T₂). The live I-type of Newcastle disease vaccine (ND) was taken as the source of immunological stress. The chickens in group (T₂) were injected with overdose of live I-type Newcastle disease vaccine. After vaccination, the dynamic changes of CD4⁺, CD8⁺T cells on thymus were detected by immunohisto-chemistry. The ultra-structure of T cells on thymus of the chickens in group (T₂) was observed by electron microscopic. The result showed: (1) After immune stress, from day 1 to day 5, the number of the CD4⁺T cells significantly declined and reached the bottom at day 5, but the number of the CD8⁺T cells increased dramatically and peaked at day 5. (2) After immune stress, from day 1 to day 5, part of T cells of chicken thymus came with apoptotic and pathological changes of putrescence continually. These results underscore: the immune stress can cause transient immune adjustment. These changes for chickens were the self-protection mechanism of immune system to adapt to survival and avoid immune disorder.

Keywords

T Cells, Chicken Thymus, Immunological Stress

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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