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Veterinary immunology and immunopathology2012; 149(3-4); 245-254; doi: 10.1016/j.vetimm.2012.07.007

Culicoides obsoletus extract relevant for diagnostics of insect bite hypersensitivity in horses.

Abstract: Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is an allergic dermatitis in horses caused by the bites of Culicoides species. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the applicability of whole body extracts of C. obsoletus (the main species found feeding on horses in the Netherlands), C. nubeculosus (rarely found in The Netherlands) and C. sonorensis (typical for North America) for diagnosis of IBH in horses in The Netherlands. Blood and serum samples of 10 clinically confirmed IBH affected and 10 healthy control horses were used to evaluate the IgE titers (ELISA) against the Culicoides whole body extracts of the three Culicoides species. Basophil degranulation was assessed by histamine release test (HRT) after stimulation with these extracts at 5, 0.5 and 0.05 μg/ml. IBH affected horses had significantly higher IgE titers against C. obsoletus than against C. nubeculosus and C. sonorensis. Furthermore, C. obsoletus induced significantly higher histamine release in whole blood of IBH affected horses compared to the other extracts at 0.5 μg/ml. Western blot data revealed IgE binding to many proteins in C. obsoletus extract. This interaction was absent or weak in C. nubeculosus and C. sonorensis extracts for IBH affected horses. Results on individual level indicate that the HRT is more sensitive than ELISA in diagnosing IBH. However, ELISA is more practical as a routine test, therefore the ELISA was further evaluated using C. obsoletus extract on 103 IBH affected and 100 healthy horses, which resulted in a test sensitivity and specificity of 93.2% and 90.0%, respectively. The IgE ELISA readings enabled the analysis of the predicted probability of being IBH affected. From an optical density 450nm value of 0.33 onwards, the probability of IBH affected was more than 0.9. The results presented in this paper show that the use of native Culicoides spp. that feed on horse, is important for improved diagnosis and that the described ELISA based on C. obsoletus can be used routinely to diagnose IBH in countries where this species is the main Culicoides feeding on horses.
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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Publication Date: 2012-07-23 PubMed ID: 22906994DOI: 10.1016/j.vetimm.2012.07.007Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Comparative Study
  • Journal Article
  • Research Support
  • Non-U.S. Gov't

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research focused on using insect extracts to diagnose insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) in horses, particularly extracts from the Culicoides species that frequently feed on horses in the Netherlands. The study concluded that the use of these native Culicoides extracts could improve IBH diagnosis and that the described ELISA test based on one species, C. obsoletus, could be used routinely for this diagnosis in countries where this insect species is the main Culicoides affecting horses.

Objective of the Research

  • The main aim of the study was to determine the effectiveness of whole body extracts from different species of Culicoides for diagnosing insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) in horses. Specifically, they tested extracts from C. obsoletus, C. nubeculosus, and C. sonorensis.

Methodology

  • Blood and serum samples from 10 horses clinically confirmed to have IBH and 10 healthy control horses were used to evaluate the immunoglobulin E (IgE) titers against the three Culicoides species.
  • The researchers used an ELISA test to measure the IgE titers and a histamine release test to assess basophil degranulation after stimulating the samples with the insect extracts.

Findings

  • The ELISA tests revealed significantly higher IgE titers against C. obsoletus compared to the other two species in the IBH-affected horses.
  • C. obsoletus also induced a much higher histamine release in whole blood samples from the affected horses. Comparatively, the other extracts had a less pronounced effect.
  • Western blot results showed that IgE binds with many proteins in the C. obsoletus extract, suggesting a potential reason for the high IgE titers and histamine release.
  • Results at the individual level implied that the histamine release test (HRT) was more sensitive in diagnosing IBH than the ELISA. However, due to practicality, the ELISA is deemed more suitable for routine testing.
  • Further evaluation of the ELISA was performed using C. obsoletus extract on a larger sample of horses (103 IBH affected and 100 healthy), achieving high sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing IBH.

Conclusion

  • The findings showed that using native Culicoides species that feed on horses is important to improve the diagnosis of IBH.
  • The research also supports the routine use of an ELISA test based on C. obsoletus for diagnosing IBH in regions where this insect species predominantly feeds on horses.

Cite This Article

APA
van der Meide NM, Meulenbroeks C, van Altena C, Schurink A, Ducro BJ, Wagner B, Leibold W, Rohwer J, Jacobs F, van Oldruitenborgh-Oosterbaan MM, Savelkoul HF, Tijhaar E. (2012). Culicoides obsoletus extract relevant for diagnostics of insect bite hypersensitivity in horses. Vet Immunol Immunopathol, 149(3-4), 245-254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetimm.2012.07.007

Publication

Veterinary immunology and immunopathology
ISSN: 1873-2534
NlmUniqueID: 8002006
Country: Netherlands
Language: English
Volume: 149
Issue: 3-4
Pages: 245-254
PII: S0165-2427(12)00270-X

Researcher Affiliations

van der Meide, Nathalie M A
  • Cell Biology and Immunology Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Meulenbroeks, Chantal
    van Altena, Christine
      Schurink, Anouk
        Ducro, Bart J
          Wagner, Bettina
            Leibold, Wolfgang
              Rohwer, Jens
                Jacobs, Frans
                  van Oldruitenborgh-Oosterbaan, Marianne M Sloet
                    Savelkoul, Huub F J
                      Tijhaar, Edwin

                        MeSH Terms

                        • Animals
                        • Ceratopogonidae / chemistry
                        • Ceratopogonidae / immunology
                        • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / methods
                        • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / standards
                        • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / veterinary
                        • Female
                        • Histamine Release / immunology
                        • Horse Diseases / blood
                        • Horse Diseases / diagnosis
                        • Horse Diseases / immunology
                        • Horses
                        • Hypersensitivity / blood
                        • Hypersensitivity / immunology
                        • Hypersensitivity / veterinary
                        • Immunoglobulin E / blood
                        • Insect Bites and Stings / blood
                        • Insect Bites and Stings / diagnosis
                        • Insect Bites and Stings / immunology
                        • Insect Bites and Stings / veterinary
                        • Logistic Models
                        • Predictive Value of Tests
                        • Sensitivity and Specificity

                        Grant Funding

                        • BBS/E/I/00001445 / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
                        • BBS/E/I/00001701 / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

                        Citations

                        This article has been cited 13 times.
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