Humoral Immunity in chicken lines developed by Embrapa Suínos e Aves: Natural and specific antibodies

Abstract

The antibodies produced in the first days of vertebrate life and are called natural antibodies (NAb). Other antibodies, produced in response to restricted contact with the antigen, are called specific antibodies (SpAb). To evaluate the production of NAb studies have used rabbit red blood cells (RRBC). On the other hand, evaluation of the production of specific antibodies can be performed with the use of sheep red blood cells (SRBC), a cell type that results in high production of SpAb. The aim of this study was to evaluate the production of NAb and SpAb in chicken lines developed by EMBRAPA Suínos e Aves. Animals of laying and poultry lines were inoculated intramuscularly with 5% of SRBC. The titers of NAb and SpAb were higher in laying hens than in broiler lines. The same results were obtained with anti-RRBC, the exception was males of the LLc lines, with lower antibody production compared to the other lines and females of the same line. These data show that the production of natural and specific antibodies is higher in laying hens compared to broilers, and that there is an effect of sex on antibody production.