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Prophylactic administration of chicken cathelicidin-2 boosts zebrafish embryonic innate immunity

2016; Elsevier BV; Volume: 60; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.dci.2016.02.023

1879-0089

Viktoria A. F. Schneider, Albert van Dijk, Astrid M. van der Sar, Marina D. Kraaij, Edwin J.A. Veldhuizen, Henk P. Haagsman,

Invertebrate Immune Response Mechanisms

Chicken cathelicidin-2 (CATH-2) is a host defense peptide that exhibits immunomodulatory and antibacterial properties. Here we examined effects of CATH-2 in zebrafish embryos in the absence and presence of infection. Yolk-injection of 0.2-1.5 h post-fertilized (hpf) zebrafish embryos with 2.6 ng/kg CATH-2 increased proliferation of phagocytic cells at 48 hpf by 30%. A lethal infection model was developed to test the prophylactic protective effect of CATH-2 peptide. Embryos (0.2-1.5 hpf) were injected with 2.6 ng/kg CATH-2, challenged with a lethal dose of fluorescently labeled Salmonella enteritidis pGMDs3 at 28 hpf and monitored for survival. Prophylactic treatment with CATH-2 was found to delay infection starting at 22 h post-infection (hpi). At 18-20 hpi, significantly lower (2-fold) fluorescence intensity and decreased bacterial loads were detected in peptide-treated embryos. Thus prophylactic administration of low CATH-2 concentrations confer partial protection in zebrafish embryos by boosting the innate immune system.