Characterisation of Antigen Presenting Activity of Small Intestinal Lamina Propria Macrophages Isolated from Normal Suckling Piglets

Abstract

Abstract Kambarage, D.M., Bland, P.W. and Stokes, C.R. 1995. Characterisation of antigen presenting activity of small intestinal lamina propria macrophages isolated from normal suckling piglets. J. Appl. Anim. Res., 8: 13–20. Susceptibility of neonatal animals to infection is due to immunological immaturity and this is partly due to lack of competence of macrophages. This study was, therefore, intended to elucidate the antigen presenting activity of non-lymphoid cells of the intestinal lamina propria of the newly born piglets. Intestinal macrophages (LPM) isolated from 7–14 days old piglets following enzymatic digestion of tissues induced significant but low T cell proliferation in response to phytohemagglutinin (PHA). They also elicited low but significant oxidative mitogenic and allogeneic mixed lymphocyte responses which were Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) class II-dependent. The results indicate that intestinal lamina propria macrophages of neonate pigs show an appreciable but low degree of im...