Department of Migration, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78315, Radolfzell, Germany.
Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78464, Konstanz, Germany.
Sci Rep. 2021 May 24;11(1):10815. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-90212-8.
Monitoring and early detection of emerging infectious diseases in wild animals is of crucial global importance, yet reliable ways to measure immune status and responses are lacking for animals in the wild. Here we assess the usefulness of bio-loggers for detecting disease outbreaks in free-living birds and confirm detailed responses using leukocyte composition and large-scale transcriptomics. We simulated natural infections by viral and bacterial pathogens in captive mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), an important natural vector for avian influenza virus. We show that body temperature, heart rate and leukocyte composition change reliably during an acute phase immune response. Using genome-wide gene expression profiling of whole blood across time points we confirm that immunostimulants activate pathogen-specific gene regulatory networks. By reporting immune response related changes in physiological and behavioural traits that can be studied in free-ranging populations, we provide baseline information with importance to the global monitoring of zoonotic diseases.
监测和早期发现野生动物中的新发传染病具有全球重要意义，但目前缺乏可靠的方法来衡量野生动物的免疫状态和反应。在这里，我们评估了生物记录器在检测自由放养鸟类疾病爆发中的有用性，并使用白细胞组成和大规模转录组学确认了详细的反应。我们通过病毒和细菌病原体模拟了圈养野鸭（Anas platyrhynchos）中的自然感染，野鸭是禽流感病毒的重要天然载体。我们表明，体温、心率和白细胞组成在急性免疫反应期间可靠地变化。通过对整个血液进行全基因组基因表达谱分析，我们证实免疫刺激剂激活了病原体特异性的基因调控网络。通过报告可以在自由放养种群中研究的与免疫反应相关的生理和行为特征变化，我们提供了对全球监测人畜共患病具有重要意义的基线信息。
