Functional similarities between pigeon \u27milk\u27 and mammalian milk : induction of immune gene expression and modification of the microbiota

Pigeon ‘milk’ and mammalian milk have functional similarities in terms of nutritional benefit and delivery of immunoglobulins to the young. Mammalian milk has been clearly shown to aid in the development of the immune system and microbiota of the young, but similar effects have not yet been attributed to pigeon ‘milk’. Therefore, using a chicken model, we investigated the effect of pigeon ‘milk’ on immune gene expression in the Gut Associated Lymphoid Tissue (GALT) and on the composition of the caecal microbiota. Chickens fed pigeon ‘milk’ had a faster rate of growth and a better feed conversion ratio than control chickens. There was significantly enhanced expression of immune-related gene pathways and interferon-stimulated genes in the GALT of pigeon ‘milk’-fed chickens. These pathways include the innate immune response, regulation of cytokine production and regulation of B cell activation and proliferation. The caecal microbiota of pigeon ‘milk’-fed chickens was significantly more diverse than control chickens, and appears to be affected by prebiotics in pigeon ‘milk’, as well as being directly seeded by bacteria present in pigeon ‘milk’. Our results demonstrate that pigeon ‘milk’ has further modes of action which make it functionally similar to mammalian milk. We hypothesise that pigeon ‘lactation’ and mammalian lactation evolved independently but resulted in similarly functional products

Interplay between Modified Vaccinia Virus Ankara and Dendritic Cells: Phenotypic and Functional Maturation of Bystander Dendritic Cells▿

Modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) is an attenuated poxvirus strain, currently under evaluation as a vaccine vector in various clinical settings. It has been reported that human dendritic cells (DCs) mature after infection with MVA, but reports on the functionality of DCs have so far been controversial. In this work, we studied the phenotype and functionality of MVA-infected DCs. As previously reported, we found that human monocyte-derived DCs upregulated CD86 and HLA-DR in response to MVA infection. Moreover, infected DCs produced a broad array of chemokines and cytokines and were able to activate and induce gamma interferon (IFN-γ) production both in CD4+ and in CD8+ allogeneic T cells and in specific autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs). Analysis of DC maturation following infection with a recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing MVA revealed that upregulation of CD86 expression was mainly observed in GFPneg (bystander) cells. While GFPpos (infected) DCs produced tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), they were unable to produce CXCL10 and were less efficient at inducing IFN-γ production in CEF-specific autologous PBLs. Maturation of bystander DCs could be achieved by incubation with supernatant from infected cultures or with apoptotic infected cells. Type I IFNs were partially responsible for the induction of CXCL10 on bystander DCs. Our findings demonstrate for the first time that, in MVA-infected DC cultures, the leading role with respect to functionality and maturation characteristics is achieved by the bystander DCs

Foreign direct investment spillovers and technical efficiency in the Indonesian pharmaceutical sector: firm level evidence

The spillovers of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on domestic firms’ performances have been highly debated for many years. This article contributes to this debate by analysing spillovers effects on technical efficiency of Indonesian pharmaceutical sector using a unique unbalanced panel of highly disaggregated (at five-digit International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC)) 210 firms over the period 1990–1995 (1001 observations). The Stochastic Production Frontier (SPF) and the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) based on Malmquist Productivity Indices (MPI) have been used to test the spillovers effects of FDI on technical efficiency. The empirical results from the SPF show that foreign firms are more efficient than domestic competitors, and the presence of the former increases the inefficiency of the latter. Similarly the results from the MPI demonstrate that FDI has a negative and significant impact on technical efficiency changes in domestic competitors, but generate positive spillovers to domestic suppliers