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Published on: October 25, 2015
Maternal undernutrition and the ovine acute phase response to vaccination
Peter D Eckersall1, Fraser P Lawson, Carol E Kyle
1Division of Animal Production and Public Health, Institute of Comparative Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Bearsden Rd, G61 1QH, UK. p.d.eckersall@vet.gla.ac.uk
Insights
Maternal undernutrition during pregnancy in ewes significantly impacts offspring's acute phase protein (APP) response, specifically reducing serum amyloid A (SAA) levels post-vaccination. This highlights how maternal nutrition affects neonatal immune development.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Immunology
- Animal Nutrition
- Neonatal Physiology
Background:
- The acute phase response (APR) is a critical host defense mechanism against infection and inflammation, monitored via acute phase proteins (APP) like haptoglobin (Hp) and serum amyloid A (SAA).
- The impact of maternal nutrition during pregnancy on neonatal APP response remains largely uncharacterized.
- Pregnancy nutrition can influence neuroendocrine and neuroimmune systems in neonates, suggesting potential effects on APP.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of maternal nutritional planes during gestation on the serum concentrations of Hp and SAA in neonatal lambs.
- To assess the dynamic APP response to vaccination in lambs born to ewes with different nutritional strategies during pregnancy.
Main Methods:
- Serum Hp and SAA concentrations were measured in lambs from three groups of ewes fed varying nutritional levels (High/High, High/Low, Low/High) during gestation.
- The lambs' APP response was evaluated by measuring Hp and SAA levels following primary and secondary vaccinations with a multivalent clostridial vaccine.
Main Results:
- Vaccination stimulated the acute phase response, increasing both Hp and SAA concentrations in lambs.
- Maternal undernutrition in the High/Low group significantly reduced the SAA response to vaccination compared to the High/High group.
- No significant effects of maternal undernutrition were observed on Hp concentrations, and the Low/High group showed no significant differences from the other groups for SAA.
- A reduced SAA response was noted after the second vaccination compared to the primary vaccination across all groups, while Hp response remained unchanged.
Conclusions:
- Maternal undernutrition prior to parturition, particularly the High/Low diet, impairs the innate immune system of offspring, evidenced by decreased post-vaccination SAA concentrations in lambs.
- The differential responses of Hp and SAA to primary and secondary vaccinations suggest that individual APP exhibit varying mechanisms in cytokine-driven responses.
Background:
The acute phase response is the immediate host response to infection, inflammation and trauma and can be monitored by measuring the acute phase proteins (APP) such as haptoglobin (Hp) or serum amyloid A (SAA). The plane of nutrition during pregnancy is known to affect many mechanisms including the neuroendocrine and neuroimmune systems in neonatal animals but effects on the APP are unknown. To investigate this phenomenon the serum concentration of Hp and SAA was initially determined in non-stimulated lambs from 3 groups (n = 10/group). The dams of the lambs of the respective groups were fed 100% of requirements throughout gestation (High/High; HH); 100% of requirements for the first 65 d of gestation followed by 70% of requirements until 125 d from when they were fed 100% of requirements (High/Low; HL); 65% of liveweight maintenance requirements for the first 65 d gestation followed by 100% of requirements for the remainder of pregnancy (Low/High; LH). The dynamic APP response in the lambs was estimated by measuring the concentration of Hp and SAA following routine vaccination with a multivalent clostridial vaccine with a Pasteurella component, Heptavac Ptrade mark following primary and secondary vaccination.
Results:
The Hp and SAA concentrations were significantly lower at the time of vaccination (day 8-14) than on the day of birth. Vaccination stimulated the acute phase response in lambs with increases found in both Hp and SAA. Maternal undernutrition led to the SAA response to vaccination being significantly lower in the HL group than in the HH group. The LH group did not differ significantly from either the HH or HL groups. No significant effects of maternal undernutrition were found on the Hp concentrations. A significant reduction was found in all groups in the response of SAA following the second vaccination compared to the response after the primary vaccination but no change occurred in the Hp response.
Conclusion:
Decreased SAA concentrations, post-vaccination, in lambs born to ewes on the HL diet shows that maternal undernutrition prior to parturition affects the innate immune system of the offspring. The differences in response of Hp and SAA to primary and secondary vaccinations indicate that the cytokine driven APP response mechanisms vary with individual APP.
