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IDENTIFICATION OF IMMUNE RESPONSE MARKERS TO OMNIGEN-AF® SUPPLEMENTATION IN A RAT MODEL
OmniGen-AF® (OG; Prince Agri Products, Inc., Quincy, IL) is a branded proprietary product shown to augment immune function in ruminants and other species. Targeted profiling of immune-associated genes in whole blood is an effective platform for identification of multiple immune response markers to feed additives. The objective of this study was to identify multiple immune response markers that are increased by dietary OG throughout a 28-d supplementation period. We hypothesized that several immune-associated genes in whole blood are consistently up-regulated in a 28-d supplementation period. Fourteen male CD rats weighing 180-200 grams had ad libitum access to a diet containing 0 (control; n=5, only 28 days) or 0.5% OG for 7 (n=4) or 28 days (n=5). Whole blood was collected at the end of the feeding period. RNA was purified from whole blood samples and used to generate cDNA that acted as template in the Rat Innate and Adaptive Immune Responses RT2 Profiler PCR array (SABiosciences). Using PROC GLM, we compared cDNA abundance of immune-associated genes between control and supplemented groups (7 or 28 d) with a P < 0.05 cut-off value for significance. Of the 77 immune-associated genes that were expressed above the detection limit in all samples, 6 genes were up-regulated after 7 d of OG supplementation with only 4 genes up-regulated after 28 d of OG supplementation. Of these genes 3 were up-regulated on both day 7 (Cd80: +2.40; Irak1: +2.25; Nod2: +2.08 fold-change) and 28 (Cd80: +1.77; Irak1: +2.50; Nod2: +1.83 fold-change). In conclusion, our results suggest Cd80, Irak1, and Nod2 as immune response markers, are increased by dietary OG throughout a 28-d supplementation period.
Keywords:
Biomarker, Immunity, OmniGen-AF