Outer membrane vesicles from Piscirickettsia salmonis induce the expression of inflammatory genes and production of IgM in Atlantic salmon Salmo salar.

Piscirickettsiosis outbreaks due to Piscirickettsia salmonis occur globally in the Chilean salmon aquaculture generating significant monetary losses in the industry. P. salmonis secretes outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) which are naturally non-replicating and highly immunogenic spherical nanoparticles. P. salmonis OMVs has been shown to induce immune response in zebrafish; however, the immune response induced by these vesicles in salmonids has not been evaluated. In this study, we inoculated Atlantic salmon with 10 and 30 μg doses of P. salmonis OMVs and took samples for 12 days. qPCR analysis indicated an inflammatory response. Thus, the inflammatory genes evaluated were up- or down-regulated at several times in liver, head kidney and spleen. In addition, the liver was the organ most immune-induced, mainly in the 30 μg-dose. Interestingly, co-expression of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines was evidenced by the prominent expression of il-10 at day 1 in spleen and also in head kidney on days 3, 6 and 12, while il-10 and tgf-β were up-regulated on days 3, 6 and 12 in liver. Importantly, we detected the production of IgM against proteins of P. salmonis in the serum collected from immunized fish after 14 days. Thus, 40 and 400 μg OMVs induced the production of highest IgM levels; however, no statistical difference in the immunoglobulin levels produced by these OMVs doses were detected. The current study provides evidence that OMVs released by P. salmonis induced a pro-inflammatory responses and IgM production in S. salar, while regulatory genes were induced in order to regulate their effects and achieve the balance of the inflammatory response.