BLV coinfection impairs immunity and diagnostics in bovine tuberculosis

Abstract

Coinfections can alter the adaptive immune responses to bovine tuberculosis (bTB) and hinder accurate diagnosis; however, their effect on host immunity to Mycobacterium bovis and disease progression is not well understood. In this study, we assessed the impact of natural coinfection with bovine leukemia virus (BLV) on immune responses to M. bovis. Among 108 cattle examined, those coinfected with BLV showed a significantly higher intragranulomatous mycobacterial burden and more severe pathological lesions compared to animals infected with M. bovis alone. Additionally, coinfected animals demonstrated a granulomatous response characterized by reduced lymphocyte populations, increased neutrophil infiltration, and diminished granuloma encapsulation, suggesting a compromised antimycobacterial immune response. Supporting this hypothesis, BLV-infected cattle exposed to mycobacterial antigens displayed impaired delayed-type hypersensitivity (type IV hypersensitivity) to a purified protein derivative of M. bovis as well as reduced antibody response. These findings indicate that BLV coinfection influences the immunopathogenesis of bTB, exacerbates disease progression in cattle naturally infected with M. bovis, and may reduce the predictive reliability of diagnostic methods used in bTB control programs.