Submitted to: Poultry Science Association Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: April 10, 1997
Publication Date: N/A
Technical Abstract: In order to identify cytokines with immunoregulatory functions in chickens, CD4+ hybridoma designated as P34 which spontaneously secretes various cytokines was developed. Rabbit antibody was developed against a P34 culture supernatant fraction with T-cell promoting activity and used to screen the P34 cDNA library. A cDNA encoding a 12kDa protein was identified and cloned into pBluescript vector. The amino acid sequence deduced from the cloned cDNA indicated a 143-amino acid precursor peptide. This 12kDa protein was expressed in many tissues including spleen, intestine and muscle using a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT- PCR). Activation of spleen cells with concanavalin A enhanced the expression of this protein in a time dependent manner in Northern blot. Stable transfection of this gene in CHO and SF9 cells produced a biologically active protein which supported the growth of gamma delta T lymphocytes. In summary, a chicken cytokine which promotes the growth of T lymphocyte subpopulation has been identified.