Development and evaluation of a SYBR Green real-time RT-PCR assay for evaluation of cytokine gene expression in horse

Cytokine secretion is one of the main mechanisms by which the immune system is regulated in response to pathogens. Therefore, the measurement of cytokine expression is fundamental to characterizing the immune response to infections. Real-time quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is widely used to measure cytokine mRNA levels, but assay conditions should be properly evaluated before analyzing important equine infections through relative quantification of gene expression. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate a set of RT-qPCR assays for a panel of the most common cytokines in horses involved in innate and adaptive immune responses. Eight cytokines (interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, IL-12, TNFα, IFNβ and IFNγ) and a housekeeping gene (β-actin) were detected and amplified with the same annealing temperature in a SYBR Green RT-qPCR assay of samples of mitogen-stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from a healthy horse and whole blood from a horse infected with African horse sickness virus. The method gave good efficiency for all genes tested, allowing quantification of relative expression levels. These SYBR Green RT-qPCR assays may be useful for examining cytokine gene expression in horses in response to exposure to economically important pathogens.

► Development and validation of a SYBR Green RT-qPCR assay for eight equine cytokines. ► Design of an efficient, rapid, and inexpensive SYBR Green RT-qPCR assay. ► Development of a diagnostic technique to characterize cytokine gene expression in equine diseases.