transforming-growth-factor-beta and Swine-Diseases

Porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2) is one of the most important endemic swine pathogens, inducing immunosuppression in pigs and predisposing them to secondary bacterial or viral infections. Our previous studies show that PCV2 infection stimulated pig intestinal epithelial cells (IPEC-J2) to produce the secretory transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), which, in turn, caused CD4

Topics: Amino Acids; Animals; Cell Line; Circoviridae Infections; Circovirus; Swine; Swine Diseases; Transforming Growth Factor beta; Transforming Growth Factors

Inflammatory mediators that are induced by gram-negative bacteria in the course of intrauterine infections threaten successful pregnancy. To compare the effect of two different routes of cytokine induction, bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was administered in vivo either into the cord vein or into the amniotic cavity of pig fetuses in the second half of gestation for 20 h and cytokines were detected in the amnion.Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) were induced in the amniotic epithelium after intra-amniotic but not after intra-venous administration of LPS. The presence of IL-8 was confirmed by RT-PCR. In contrast, transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) was expressed constitutively and was found in all samples of the amniotic epithelium. Amniotic fluid contained only minute levels of TNF-alpha. IL-8 levels in amniotic fluid increased after the treatment with LPS and the highest IL-8 levels were found in dead LPS-treated fetuses.

Topics: Amnion; Animals; Chorioamnionitis; Female; Fetus; Immunohistochemistry; Interleukin-8; Lipopolysaccharides; Pregnancy; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA, Messenger; Swine; Swine Diseases; Swine, Miniature; Transforming Growth Factor beta; Transforming Growth Factor beta1; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

Osteochondrosis and dyschondroplasia are common multifocal disturbances of endochondral ossification in many species of domestic animals, and are characterized by the retention of avascular cartilage. These cartilage disorders are characterized by a failure of chondrocyte differentiation, matrix mineralisation and its replacement by bone. Rabbit polyclonal antibodies to transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and to insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) were used to detect the two growth factors in normal and osteochondrotic porcine epiphyses. In the normal pig epiphyses IGF-I and TGF-beta were present in the chondrocytes of the epiphyseal hyaline cartilage and IGF-I was readily localised to the hypertrophic chondrocytes in the growth cartilage adjacent to the epiphyseal ossification centre. Both growth factors were found to be deficient in chondrocytes at sites of osteochondrosis. Both these growth factors are thought to be involved in the cascade of events associated with chondrocyte function during endochondral ossification. Deficiencies in TGF-beta and IGF-I demonstrated in porcine osteochondrosis and previously shown in avian dyschondroplasia suggest further similarities in the pathogenesis of these conditions.

Topics: Animals; Antibodies; Cartilage, Articular; Epiphyses; Immunohistochemistry; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; Male; Osteochondritis; Swine; Swine Diseases; Transforming Growth Factor beta