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Reduced Formation of Granulomata in T Cell Knockout BALB/c Mice Inoculated with Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis

Kyushu Research Station, National Institute of Animal Health, Chuzan, Kagoshima, Japan (ST, MS); Brain Science Institute, Riken, Wako, Saitama, Japan (SI); and National Institute of Animal Health, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan (TT, YY)

The role of T cells in the bovine immune response to Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (M. paratuberculosis) infection is poorly understood. Accordingly, using BALB/c mice that are innately susceptible to M. paratuberculosis, we compared wild-type and T cell knockout BALB/c mice to study the protective roles of T cells in M. paratuberculosis infection. Ten-week-old mice were inoculated intraperitoneally with either a low dose (4 x 10⁶ colony-forming units [CFU]/mouse) or a high dose (4 x 10⁹ CFU/mouse) of M. paratuberculosis strain ATCC 19698. Histopathologic and morphometric examinations showed reductions in the number and area of granulomatous lesions in the liver of the knockout mice at 18 weeks after inoculation with either the low or the high dose of the mycobacteria. Furthermore, at 18 weeks after inoculation, the bacterial load in the spleens of the knockout mice inoculated with the high dose was significantly lower than that of wild-type mice. No differences were found in bacterial load between the knockout and the wild-type mice in the low-dose groups. In contrast, in the livers of wild-type mice inoculated with either the low or high mycobacterial dose, increased areas of epithelioid granulomata were observed and the granulomata became disseminated widely during the experimental period. These findings in model mice suggest that T cells, rather than restricting mycobacterial growth, may play a crucial role in development of epithelioid granulomata similar to those seen consistently in bovine paratuberculosis. The results of this study may have relevance to our understanding of the pathogenesis of paratuberculosis in ruminants, in which a prominent number of T cells exist in the lymphoid system.

Key words: BALB/c mice; T cells; granuloma formation; paratuberculosis.

Request reprints from Dr. S. Tanaka, Kyushu Research Station, National Institute of Animal Health, Chuzan, Kagoshima 891-0105 (Japan). E-mail: tanakas{at}sat.affrc.go.jp.

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