Specific serum protein changes associated with primary and secondary Strongylus vulgaris infections in pony yearlings.

The research measures changes in specific proteins in the blood serum of pony yearlings following infection and reinfection with two different stages of Strongylus vulgaris larvae. The study concludes that this method of measurement is more reliable and faster than other techniques in monitoring these changes.

Experiment Overview

• The research involved four pony yearlings that were initially free of parasites.
• Two groups of ponies were formed – Group H, which received a single dose of 700 Stage Three Strongylus vulgaris larvae (L3), and Group L, which received a dose of 200 L3.
• The ponies were subjected to a reinfection with the same respective parasite doses 34 weeks later. The results were compared with an uninfected control pony.

Haptoglobin Concentration Changes

• Haptoglobin concentrations in the blood serum increased for 1-6 and 14-17 weeks after infection in the ponies that received 200 L3.
• Only a single pony which received 700 L3 had an increase in haptoglobin concentration, from 1-16 weeks post infection.
• The first seven weeks following the second infection, haptoglobin concentrations again increased in three of the four ponies receiving a second dose of larvae.

Immunoglobin Concentrations Changes

• The concentration of Immunoglobin (Ig)G(T) in the sera began to increase from 6 or 9 weeks in the ponies given 700 L3, peaking eight to nine weeks later. For those dosed with 200 L3, this peak came 20 to 22 weeks after
  infection.
• After reinfection, the IgG(T) concentration increased to a maximum of 25 g/litre in the serum of only one of the four ponies.
• The concentration of serum IgG in all ponies increased almost twofold during the first eight weeks following both original infection and reinfection.

Conclusion

• The researchers concluded that tracking specific protein changes in serum was a reliable and quicker method than electrophoretic separation and quantitation of protein bands. This was particularly relevant in tracking changes in serum proteins following the controlled infection of ponies with S vulgaris larvae.