Experimental reproduction of proliferative enteropathy and the role of IFN-γ in protective immunity against Lawsonia intracellularis in mice

Abstract

Proliferative enteropathy was reproduced in IFN-γ receptor knockout (IFN-γ R-) mice by experimental infection with Lawsonia intracellularis (L. intracellularis). The cecum and the colon of the infected mice were evidently enlarged 2 weeks post infection. The presence of L. intracellularis was identified in the stool and the cecum of the mice after infection. However, high levels of IFN-γ were detected in the sera of the infected mice 2 weeks PI. These data indicated that the IFN-γ produced in the infected mice should have been utilized by it's receptor to elicit protective immune responses against L. intracellularis infections.