Vitamin D3 modulates the function of chicken macrophages.

Vitamin D3 is known to modulate both innate and adaptive immune responses in mammals, but there is little information on its effects on avian immune system cells. Here, we studied the effects of vitamin D3 on chicken macrophages. Chicken macrophages expressed vitamin D receptor (VDR) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation increased their VDR expression. Macrophages were treated with 1,25(OH)2D3 in the presence or absence of Toll-like receptor ligands, such as LPS and Pam3CSK4. Subsequently, macrophage activation was assessed by measuring nitric oxide (NO) and expression of CXCL8 and interleukin (IL)-1ß. In addition, changes in major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-II and CD86 were examined. Treatment of cells with 1,25(OH)2D3 increased the ability of macrophages to respond to stimuli and produce NO, but vitamin D3 alone did not activate macrophages and resulted in the down-regulation of CD86, MHC-II, CXCL8 and IL-1ß. These findings suggest that vitamin D3 has an immunomodulatory role in chicken macrophages.

Molecular detection and characterization of cpb2 gene in Clostridium perfringens isolates from healthy and diseased chickens

Clostridium perfringens is an important pathogen in both human and veterinary medicine. Necrotic enteritis (NE) is the most clinically dramatic bacterial enteric disease of poultry induced by C. perfringens. The pathogenicity of this bacterium is associated with the production of extracellular toxins produced by some of its strains, such as beta2 toxin. The exact role of beta2 toxin in NE pathogenesis is still controversial. In the present study, C. perfringens isolates from healthy and diseased poultry flocks from different parts of Iran were analyzed by PCR assay to determine the presence of all variants of the beta2 toxin gene (cpb2). The products of two positive cpb2 PCR reactions were sequenced, compared to each other and to the cpb2 sequences published in GenBank (by multiple alignment and phylogenetic analysis). The current work represents the first study of cpb2 in poultry C. perfringens isolates in Asia, and reports the highest percentage of cpb2-positive isolates in both apparently healthy chickens (97.7%) and those afflicted with NE (94.4 %). The sequenced isolates were classified as atypical. This study did not show a direct correlation between NE occurrence and cpb2 presence.(AU)