Transcriptional expression levels of chicken collectins are affected by avian influenza A virus inoculation

Sylvia S. Reemers , Edwin J.A. Veldhuizen , Cherina Fleming , Daphne A. van Haarlem , Henk Haagsman , Lonneke Vervelde

Mammalian collectins have been found to play an important role in the defense against influenza A virus H9N2 inoculation, but for chicken collectins this has not yet been clarified. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of avian influenza A virus (AIV) inoculation on collectin gene expression in the respiratory tract of chickens and whether this was affected by age. For this purpose 1- and 4-week-old chickens were inoculated intratracheally with PBS or H9N2 AIV. Chickens were killed at 0, 8, 16 and 24h post inoculation and trachea and lung were harvested for analysis. Viral RNA expression and mRNA expression of chicken collectins 1 and 2 (cCL-1 and cCL-2), chicken lung lectin (cLL) and chicken surfactant protein A (cSP-A) were determined using real-time quantitative RT-PCR. In lung, a decrease in mRNA expression of cCL-2, cLL and cSP-A after inoculation with H9N2 was seen in both 1- and 4-week-old birds, although at different time points, while in trachea changes were only seen in 4-week-old birds and expression was increased. Moreover, collectin expression correlated with viral RNA expression in lung of 1-week-old birds. These results suggest that both age and location in the respiratory tract affect changes in collectin mRNA expression after inoculation with H9N2 and indicate a possible role for collectins in the host response to AIV in the respiratory tract of chickens.

Mots clés: Avian influenza virus; Immune response; C-type lectin; Innate immunity

Sylvia S. Reemers, Edwin J.A. Veldhuizen, Cherina Fleming, Daphne A. van Haarlem, Henk Haagsman, et al.. Transcriptional expression levels of chicken collectins are affected by avian influenza A virus inoculation. Veterinary Microbiology, 2010, 141 (3-4), pp.379. ⟨10.1016/j.vetmic.2009.09.026⟩. ⟨hal-00570026⟩