Investigating the Efficacy of Fecal SIgA in High and Low Fecal Egg Shedding Horses
Date
2024-05
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Parasite infection is an extremely prevalent topic with regards to equine
health, especially when discussing cyathostomins. Cyathostomins are ubiquitous to
horses and can pose a serious health threat. Cyathostomins are resistant to, or
becoming resistant to, the few anthelmintic classes that are available for treating
these persistent worms due to overuse of these medications. All horses are born with
an innate natural immunity to cyathostomins that is existent throughout their life.
The mechanism of how and why some horses are more immune to cyathostomins is
not yet understood. Determining the mechanism behind horses’ natural immunity
could help in furthering an alternative treatment to cyathostomins other than
anthelmintics. The objective of this study was to determine if there is a difference
between the affinity of high and low fecal egg shedder fecal Secretory
Immunoglobulin A for the surface of the cyathostomin larvae by imaging worms that
were tagged using immunofluorescence. This study ultimately found no significant
difference in the binding efficacy between high and low fecal egg shedder SIgA;
however, the preliminary study did find fecal SIgA to be significant in regards to
cyathostomin infection.