Effect of recombinant Interferon Gamma administration on the process of chronic infection by Salmonella Pullorum in poultry

• Grant number: 25/11673-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: October 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2029
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Angelo Berchieri Junior
• Grantee: Isabella Cardeal Campos
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Jaboticabal. Jaboticabal , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Pullorum disease is present in developing countries, caused by Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Gallinarum biovar Pullorum (S. Pullorum - SP), whose main route of transmission is vertical. This characteristic made its control necessary for the feasibility of artificial incubation and the development of commercial poultry farming. Animals that survive the disease become persistently infected, which, in the case of breeder birds, compromises the artificial incubation process. Previous studies have shown that the use of recombinant IFN-¿ is promising, promoting greater macrophage activation and reducing intracellular bacterial survival, which may be more effective at the stage when the bacterium is modulating the immune system. Furthermore, IFN-¿ administration appears to be a promising approach for studying other systemic diseases caused by Salmonella host-adapted serovars, such as S. Typhi in humans. The present study aims to evaluate the effect of administering recombinant chicken Interferon Gamma (IFN-¿) in birds infected with SP, assessing both systemic infection and the host immune response. The immune response will be evaluated through cytokine quantification by RT-qPCR and the enumeration of macrophages, as well as TCD4+ and TCD8+ lymphocytes. (AU)