Metabolismo oxidativo de leucócitos em animais infectados pelo Vírus da Leucemia Bovina

Abstract

Widespread Bovine Leukemia Virus (BLV) infection leads to persistent lymphocytosis (PL) or lymphosarcoma, mainly in dairy herds. Nevertheless, neither the sequence of events that conducts to these symptoms, nor the effect of infection on function of different leukocyte populations, is well known. We evaluated the effect of BLV infection on immune response of cows through the analysis of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) intracellular production of circulating leukocytes after in vitro stimuli with phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA), Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharides (LPS), or Staphylococcus aureus H2O2 was measured by dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate dependent fluorescence. Results showed that BLV infection does not alter the percentage of H2O2-producing circulating leukocytes (H2O2-PCL), with or without previous stimuli. However, the average of H2O2 intracellular production, with or without previous stimuli, in leukocytes obtained from cows with PL was smaller than those from cells obtained from BLV-negative cows and from BLV-infected, non-lymphocytotic cows. Moreover, stimuli increased H2O2 intracellular production and the percentage of H2O2-PCL obtained from BLVnegative cows and from BLV-infected, non-lymphocytotic cows. Conversely, neither phagocytosis of S. aureus and stimulus with LPS increases H2O2 intracellular production, nor phagocytosis increases the percentage of H2O2 -PCL, when leukocytes were obtained from cows with PL. Thus, results show that BLV-infected cattle, with PL, have an impaired H2O2 intracellular production, demonstrating functional vulnerability reflected by immunosuppression. Cells were obtained from five BLV-non infected cows, five BLV-infected, non-lymphocytotic cows, and five BLV-infected cows with PL, and analyzed by flow cytometry. Intracellular production of H2O2 intracellular production, demonstrating functional vulnerability reflected by immunosuppression.