Importanza prognostica delle citochine e loro ruolo nell'immunomodulazione: risultati di studi sperimentali in vivo e in vitro
Creators: name: Bonato, Andrea <1980>
Publisher: name: Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna
Year: 2008
Subjects: VET/08 Clinica medica veterinaria

description: Citokines are proteins produced by several cell types and secreted in response to various
stimuli. These molecules are able to modify the behaviour of other cells inducing activities
like growth, differentiation and apoptosis.
In the last years, veterinary scientists have investigated the role played by these factors; in
fact, cytokines can act as intercellular communicative signals in immune response, cell
damage repair and hematopoiesis. Up to date, various cytokines have been identified and in
depth comprehension of their effects in physiology, pathology and therapy is an interesting
field of research.
This thesis aims to understand the role played by these mediators during natural or
experimentally induced pathologies. In particular, it has been evaluated the genic and protein
expressions of a large number of cytokines during several diseases and starting from different
matrix.
Considering the heterogeneity of materials used in experimentations, multiple methods and
protocols of nucleic acids and proteins extractions have been standardized.
Results on cytokines expression obtained from various in vitro and in vivo experimental
studies have shown how important these mediators are in regulation and modulation of the
host immune response also in veterinary medicine.
In particular, the analysis of inflammatory and septic markers, like cytokines, has allowed a
better understanding in the pathogenesis during horse Recurrent Airway Obstruction, foal
sepsis, Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus infection and dog Parvovirus infection and the effects of
these agents on the host immune system.
As experimentations with mice have shown, some pathologies of the respiratory and nervous
system can be reduced or even erased by blocking cytokines inflammatory production.
The in vitro cytokines expression evaluation in cells which are in vivo involved in the
response to exogenous (like pathogens) or endogenous (as it happens during autoimmune
diseases) inflammatory stimuli could represent a model for studying citokines effects during
the host immune response. This has been analyzed using lymphocytes cultured with several
St. aureus strains isolated from bovine mastitic milk and different colostrum products. In the
first experiment different cytokines were expressed depending on enterotoxins produced,
justifying a different behaviour of the microrganism in the mammal gland. In the second one,
bone marrow cells derived incubated with murine lymphocytes with colostrum products have
shown various cluster of differentiation expression , different proliferation and a modified
cytokines profile.
A better understanding of cytokine expression mechanisms will increase the know-how on
immune response activated by several pathogen agents.
In particular, blocking the cytokine production, the inhibition or catalyzation of the receptor
binding mechanism and the modulation of signal transduction mechanism will represent a
novel therapeutic strategy in veterinary medicine.