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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Animal Disease Center » Ruminant Diseases and Immunology Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #79146
Title: EXPRESSION OF ADHESION MOLECULES ON NEUTROPHILS OF PERIPARTURIENT COWS AND NEONATAL CALVES

Author
item LEE, EUN-KYUNG - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item Kehrli Jr, Marcus

Submitted to: American Journal of Veterinary Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/25/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: This report evaluates the status of the immune system of dairy cows around calving time and newborn calves. Diseases such as mastitis, diarrhea, and pneumonia are reported on all dairy farms. United States dairy farmers lose $180 due to mastitis per cow annually. Similarly, significant financial losses with calfhood diseases are also found on dairy farms. We reported here that important surface molecules on a type of immune cell are not at their normal level the first day after birth in the cow and calf. Immune cells studied were neutrophils (a white blood cell responsible for rapid clearance of bacterial infections). Loss of these important surface molecules predicts significantly impaired immunity during the first day of life in both the calf and its mother. Benefits of this work include the development of an experimental model for evaluating drugs that may prevent a defective immune system and, thus, benefit the health status of cows and calves. This research may eventually reduce antibiotic usage on farms.

Technical Abstract: Objective---To determine expression of the beta-2 integrin (CD18) family of adhesion molecules and L-selectin (CD62L) on neutrophils from periparturient cows and calves. Animals---Eight periparturient Holstein cows and nine Holstein calves. Procedure---Constitutive CD18 and CD62L expression on neutrophils was determined by flow cytometry using specific monoclonal antibodies. Platelet-activating factor (PAF) was used to activate neutrophils in vitro to measure down-regulation of CD62L and up-regulation of CD18 on activated neutrophils. Results---Mean values for both constitutive and PAF-stimulated CD18 expression on neutrophils from cows and calves were highest at parturition, then declined during the first 24 hours postpartum on calf neutrophils while CD62L declined dramatically by 9 to 24 hours after calving on cow and calf neutrophils. The constitutive CD18 and CD62L levels on cow neutrophils returned to prepartum values by three days postpartum. Calf neutrophil levels of CD18 expression recovered by one week of age but did not reach the original birth levels, whereas CD62L expression exceeded birth levels three days postpartum.