Lipidomic analysis of immune activation in equine leptospirosis and Leptospira-vaccinated horses

PLoS One. 2018 Feb 23;13(2):e0193424. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0193424. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

Currently available diagnostic assays for leptospirosis cannot differentiate vaccine from infection serum antibody. Several leptospiral proteins that are upregulated during infection have been described, but their utility as a diagnostic marker is still unclear. In this study, we undertook a lipidomics approach to determine if there are any differences in the serum lipid profiles of horses naturally infected with pathogenic Leptospira spp. and horses vaccinated against a commercially available bacterin. Utilizing a high-resolution mass spectrometry serum lipidomics analytical platform, we demonstrate that cyclic phosphatidic acids, diacylglycerols, and hydroperoxide oxidation products of choline plasmalogens are elevated in the serum of naturally infected as well as vaccinated horses. Other lipids of interest were triacylglycerols that were only elevated in the serum of infected horses and sphingomyelins that were increased only in the serum of vaccinated horses. This is the first report looking at the equine serum lipidome during leptospiral infection and vaccination.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Horse Diseases / immunology
  • Horse Diseases / metabolism*
  • Horses
  • Leptospira / immunology*
  • Leptospira / physiology
  • Leptospirosis / immunology
  • Leptospirosis / metabolism
  • Leptospirosis / veterinary*
  • Lipid Metabolism*
  • Vaccination*

Grants and funding

Funds for this work were provided by LMU-College of Veterinary Medicine’s internal grant program. The funders had no role in the study design or this manuscript.