RESUMEN
Blood samples were taken from 29 male and 21 female clinically normal European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) that had been overwintered in an English rehabilitation centre, and the mean (sd) and ranges of their haematological values were determined. The mean cellular volume and lymphocyte counts of the female hedgehogs were slightly but significantly higher than those of the male hedgehogs.
Asunto(s)
Erizos/sangre , Animales , Femenino , Masculino , Valores de Referencia , Reino UnidoRESUMEN
In this report, we describe the use of novel mass spectrometry instrumentation to identify a male-specific minor histocompatibility Ag restricted by HLA-A*0101 (A1-HY). This Ag has the sequence IVDC*LTEMY, where C* represents a cysteine disulfide bonded to a second cysteine residue. The core peptide sequence is found in the protein product of DFFRY, a Y chromosome gene not previously identified as the source of an HY Ag. The male-specific form of the peptide differs from its X chromosomal counterpart by the substitution of serine for the C* residue. Both peptides are expressed on the cell surface at 30 or fewer copies per cell. However, A1-HY-specific CTL recognize the DFFRY-derived peptide at a 1500-fold lower dose than the female homologue. Thus, these studies have identified a new source of HY epitopes and provide additional information about the influence of posttranslational modifications of class I-associated peptides on T cell recognition.
Asunto(s)
Cisteína/metabolismo , Antígeno H-Y/metabolismo , Antígenos HLA-A/inmunología , Antígenos de Superficie/aislamiento & purificación , Antígenos de Superficie/metabolismo , Células Cultivadas , Disulfuros/metabolismo , Epítopos/aislamiento & purificación , Femenino , Antígeno H-Y/aislamiento & purificación , Humanos , Masculino , Espectrometría de Masas/métodos , Metionina/metabolismo , Cromosoma X/genética , Cromosoma Y/genéticaRESUMEN
Paraplegia affected 14 hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in a wildlife rescue hospital over a period of six months. Postmortem examination revealed demyelination in the brain and spinal cord and an inflammatory response in the meninges, choroid plexus and CNS. The peripheral nervous system was not affected. In the spleen, lungs and liver there was an accumulation of megakaryocytes and other evidence of extramedullary haemopoiesis, but there was no haematological evidence of anaemia. The pattern of disease incidence and the nature of the changes in the CNS suggest they were of viral origin, but no causal agent was isolated and the possibility of a neurotoxin cause cannot be ruled out.
