Training associated alterations in equine respiratory immunity using a multiomics comparative approach.

Area of Science:

• Equine medicine
• Pulmonary immunology
• Molecular biology

Background:

• Neutrophilic airway inflammation, termed mild to moderate equine asthma (MMEA), is common in training racehorses.
• A strong association exists between MMEA and the initiation of race training programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the impact of race training on the pulmonary immune system in Thoroughbred horses.
• To define changes in gene and protein expression within tracheal wash samples before and after training commencement.

Main Methods:

• Multiomics analysis of tracheal wash (TW) samples from Thoroughbred racehorses.
• Comparison of gene and protein expression profiles pre- and post-training initiation.

Main Results:

• Multiomics analysis identified 2138 differentially expressed genes and 260 proteins during the training period.
• Enriched gene and protein sets indicated involvement of acute phase response, oxidative stress, hematopoietic processes, and immune/inflammatory responses.
• Tracheal wash samples proved valuable for studying airway immunity, highlighting the utility of multiomics approaches.

Conclusions:

• Race training induces significant molecular changes in the equine airway immune system.
• Findings provide insights into mechanisms underlying training-associated airway inflammation and bleeding in horses.
• Multiomics analysis is a powerful tool for investigating equine airway immunity dynamics.