Cytokine profiles in pregnant gilts experimentally infected with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus and relationships with viral load and fetal outcome.

In spite of extensive research, immunologic control mechanisms against Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus (PRRSv) remain poorly understood. Cytokine responses have been exhaustively studied in nursery pigs and show contradictory results. Since no detailed reports on cytokine responses to PRRSv in pregnant females exist, the objectives of this study were to compare host cytokine responses between PRRSv-infected and non-infected pregnant gilts, and to investigate relationships between cytokine levels in infected gilts and viral load or fetal mortality rate. Serum samples and supernatants of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) either stimulated with PRRSv or phorbol myristate acetate/Ionomycin (PMA/Iono) were analyzed for cytokines/chemokines: interleukins (IL) 1-beta (IL1β), IL4, IL8, IL10, IL12, chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), interferon alpha (IFNα) and interferon gamma (IFNγ). Three cytokines (IFNα, CCL2, IFNγ) in gilt serum differed significantly in inoculated versus control gilts over time. In supernatants of PRRSv stimulated PBMC from PRRSv-infected gilts, levels of IFNα were significantly decreased, while IL8 secretion was significantly increased. PRRSv infection altered the secretion of all measured cytokines, with the exception of IFNα, from PBMC after mitogen stimulation, indicating a possible immunomodulatory effect of PRRSv. IFNα, CCL2, and IFNγ in serum, and IFNγ in supernatants of PMA/Iono stimulated PBMC were significantly associated with viral load in tissues, serum or both. However, only IFNα in supernatants of PRRSv stimulated PBMC was significantly associated with fetal mortality rate. We conclude that of the eight cytokines tested in this study IFNα was the best indicator of viral load and severity of reproductive PRRSv infection

Q-Value and Half-Lives for the Double-Beta-Decay Nuclide 110Pd

The 110Pd double-beta decay Q-value was measured with the Penning-trap mass spectrometer ISOLTRAP to be Q = 2017.85(64) keV. This value shifted by 14 keV compared to the literature value and is 17 times more precise, resulting in new phase-space factors for the two-neutrino and neutrinoless decay modes. In addition a new set of the relevant matrix elements has been calculated. The expected half-life of the two-neutrino mode was reevaluated as 1.5(6) E20 yr. With its high natural abundance, the new results reveal 110Pd to be an excellent candidate for double-beta decay studies