Eimeria maxima-induced transcriptional changes in the chicken intestine

Authors: Li, Charles; Yan, Xianghe; Lillehoj, Hyun; GU, CHANGQIN - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA); SUN, ZHIFENG - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA); OH, SUNGTAEK - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA); LEE, YOUNGSUB - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA); XIANYU, ZHEZI - University Of Delaware; ZHAO, HONGYAN - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA); LIU, LIHENG - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)

Submitted to: Frontiers in Immunology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/27/2019
Publication Date: 6/4/2019
Citation: Li, C.Z., Yan, X., Lillehoj, H.S., Gu, C., Sun, Z., Oh, S., Lee, Y., Xianyu, Z., Zhao, H., Liu, L. 2019. Eimeria maxima-induced transcriptional changes in the chicken intestine. Frontiers in Immunology. 12:285. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-019-3534-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-019-3534-4

Interpretive Summary: The increasing cost in control of infectious diseases is one of the big challenges that the global poultry food industry is facing. One of the top priority enteric diseases in poultry is coccidiosis. It is caused by a mixture of intestinal parasites called Eimeria, which damages the bird's intestinal barrier, results in underperformance of poultry growth and impacts animal welfare, with estimated economic loss of $3 billion annually worldwide. These parasites also are the most important inducing factor for another critical enteric infectious disease called necrotic enteritis, which has increased significantly in parallel with the reduction/withdrawal of growth promoting antibiotics from feed in response to government regulation and public concern over appearance of the antibiotic resistant bacteria. Lack of a full understanding of molecular mechanisms on chicken host-parasite interaction limits the development of effective control measurement. In order to effectively control coccidiosis, the disease-causing mechanism of parasitic pathogens needs to be elucidated. Genetic material known as mRNA was extracted from the intestine mucosa of chickens with coccidiosis infections, sequenced using advanced RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and analyzed to evaluate gene profiles after parasite infections. RNA-seq analysis revealed that 27 genes were significantly up-regulated while 43 genes were significantly down-regulated. These genes were associated with immune-related gene families. In addition, parasitic infection resulted in a significant increase of single nucleotide changes with different forms or appearances of small insertions and deletions in the chicken genes. Furthermore, 10 novel genes were also found. Broad gene categories represented by highly differentiated host genes suggest enrichments for immune responses and tissue healing functions. Analysis of data revealed several potential molecular regulations and suggests novel putative immune components. These findings will enhance our understanding of chicken-parasite interaction in parasitic diseases that will facilitate the development of logical strategies for improvement of chicken immunity and disease control.

Technical Abstract: The increasing cost in control of infectious diseases is one of the big challenges that the global poultry food industry is facing. One of the top priority enteric diseases in poultry is coccidiosis. It is caused by a mixture of intestinal parasites called Eimeria, which damages the bird's intestinal barrier, results in underperformance of poultry growth and impacts animal welfare, with estimated economic loss of $3 billion annually worldwide. These parasites also are the most important inducing factor for another critical enteric infectious disease called necrotic enteritis, which has increased significantly in parallel with the reduction/withdrawal of growth promoting antibiotics from feed in response to government regulation and public concern over appearance of the antibiotic resistant bacteria. Lack of a full understanding of molecular mechanisms on chicken host-parasite interaction limits the development of effective control measurement. In order to effectively control coccidiosis, the disease-causing mechanism of parasitic pathogens needs to be elucidated. Genetic material known as mRNA was extracted from the intestine mucosa of chickens with coccidiosis infections, sequenced using advanced RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and analyzed to evaluate gene profiles after parasite infections. RNA-seq analysis revealed that 27 genes were significantly up-regulated while 43 genes were significantly down-regulated. These genes were associated with immune-related gene families. In addition, parasitic infection resulted in a significant increase of single nucleotide changes with different forms or appearances of small insertions and deletions in the chicken genes. Furthermore, 10 novel genes were also found. Broad gene categories represented by highly differentiated host genes suggest enrichments for immune responses and tissue healing functions. Analysis of data revealed several potential molecular regulations and suggests novel putative immune components. These findings will enhance our understanding of chicken-parasite interaction in parasitic diseases that will facilitate the development of logical strategies for improvement of chicken immunity and disease control.