Local cytokine transcription in naive and previously infected sheep and lambs following challenge with Teladorsagia circumcincta.

Craig NM, Smith DW, Pate JA, Morrison IW, Knight PA, Nicola M Craig, David W Smith, Judith A Pate, Ivan W Morrison, Pamela A Knight

The abomasal helminth Teladorsagia circumcincta is one of the most economically important parasites affecting sheep in temperate regions. Infection is particularly detrimental to lambs, in which it can cause pronounced morbidity and severe production losses. Due to the spreading resistance of this parasite to all classes of anthelmintic drugs, teladorsagiosis is having an increasingly severe impact on the sheep industry with significant implications for sheep welfare. Protective immunity develops slowly, wanes rapidly and does not appear to be as effective in young lambs. To investigate the development of immunity to T. circumcincta in sheep and lambs, we used cytokine transcript profiling to examine differences in the abomasal mucosa and gastric lymph node of naïve and previously infected sheep and lambs following challenge.