U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government
                    Here's how you know **Official websites use .gov**
                            
                            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
 **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                            
                            A **lock** (                            
                              A locked padlock                                                      
                            
                            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Menu Agricultural Research Service
						
                    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 close



Research
                Research Home
                            National Programs
                            Research Projects
                            Scientific Manuscripts
                            International Engagement
                            Scientific Software/Models
                            Databases and Datasets
                            Office of Scientific Quality Review
            Media
                News & Features
                            Multimedia
                            Briefing Room
                            Down on the Farm
                            Press Room
                            Science in Your Shopping Cart
                            Scientific Discoveries
                            Tellus
                            Under the Microscope
            About ARS
                About ARS Home
                            Staff Directory
                            Labs and Research Centers (Map)
                            Headquarter Offices
                            Organizational Chart
                            Employee Services (REE Employees Only)
                            Office of Outreach, Diversity, and Equal Opportunity
            Work With Us
                Work With Us Home
                            ARS Vacancies at USAJOBS
                            Careers at ARS Information
                            Scientific Collaborations
                            Extramural Agreements
                            1890 Faculty Research Sabbatical ProgramSearch small
                    Search
            
            ARS Home
                                About ARS
                                Contact Us




ARS Home Research Publications at this Location





- ARS National Programs
- Search for a scientific manuscript
- Search for a research project
- ARS Software
- Programs and Projects
- Collaborations
- Subjects of Investigation
- Publications

Title:   Author  item
                                            Lillehoj, Hyunitem
                                            DEL CACHO, EMILIO - UNIV ZARAGOZA, SPAINitem
                                            GALLEGO, MARGARITA - UNIV ZARAGOZA, SPAINitem
                                            LOPEZ-BERNARD, FERNANDO - UNIV ZARAGOZA, SPAINitem
                                            SANCHEZ-ACEDO, CARIDAD - UNIV ZARAGOZA, SPAIN
  Submitted to: Journal of Immunological Methods
                                    Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 7/10/2008
                                    Publication  Date: 7/22/2008
                                    Citation: Lillehoj, H.S., Del Cacho, E., Gallego, M., Lopez-Bernard, F., Sanchez-Acedo, C. 2008. Isolation of chicken follicular dendritic cells. Journal of Immunological Methods. 334:59-69.Interpretive Summary: Fundamental knowledge on poultry immune system and the role played by each component of poultry immune system is ciritcal to develop novel strategies against many poultry diseases of economic importance. As in mammals, avian follicular dendritic cells (FDC) are central players in humoral immunity. In recent years, considerable progress has been made in understanding the basis of the FDC activity by the way of studies performed in vitro using purified populations of mammalian FDC. Despite their important role in driving high-affinity antibody responses, it has not been possible to study chicken dendritic cells due to a lack of isolation protocols and absence of FDC-specific reagents. In this paper, scientists at the University of Zaragoza, Spain and an ARS scientist describe a new method for the isolation of  avian FDC which are CD45- and  express IgG on their surface. The FDC identity was confirmed by morphological, phenotypical and functional characteristics. In conclusion, the protocol described here demonstrates  for the first time a novel method for isolating pure avian FDC that will aid in the functional analysis of  dendritic cells in avian species and this method should facilitate future studies on the cellular function of avian FDC in normal and disease states for poultry scientists.
                                Technical Abstract: The aim of the present study was to isolate chicken follicular dendritic cells (FDC). A combination of methods involving panning, iodixanol density gradient centrifugation, and magnetic cell separation technology made it possible to obtain functional FDC from the cecal tonsils from chickens, which had been infected with Eimeria tenella. CD45- dendritic cells were selected using the specific monoclonal antibody against chicken CD45, which is a marker for chicken leukocytes, whereas it is not expressed on chicken FDC. Isolated FDC were characterized morphologically, phenotypically and functionally.  The phenotype of selected cells was consistent with FDC in that they expressed IgG, IgM, complement factors C3 and B, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1, but lacked cell surface markers characteristic of macrophages, T-, and B-cells. Furthermore, transmission electron microscopy confirmed their characteristic dendritic morphology. In addition, FDC identity was further confirmed by their ability to trap chicken immune complexes (ICs) on their surface, whereas they did not trap naive antigen (ovalbumin) or ICs generated with mammalian immunoglobulins. Moreover, co-culturing FDC with B-cells in the presence of allogeneic or autologous cells resulted in enhanced B-cell proliferation and immunoglobulin production. The lack of MHC restriction, a functional characteristic feature of FDC, further reinforces the identity of the isolated cells as chicken FDC.


Return to top


Connect with ARS Sign up


ARS Home
                            USDA.gov
                            Plain Writing
                            Policies & Links
                            Civil Rights Statements
                            FOIA
                            Accessibility Statement
                            Privacy Policy
                            Non-Discrimination Statement
                            Quality of Information
                            USA.gov
                            WhiteHouse.gov