Sarah and Renee

SARAH AND RENEE Department of Biology Murray State University, Murray, KY 42071. Mentor: Terry Derting Title of Presentation: Energy costs and trade-offs of the adaptive immune system in Old-field Mice (Peromyscus polionotus) Program: Biology and Mathematics in Population Studies Presented at: Kentucky Academy of Science meeting, National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NimBioS) meeting, Posters-at-the-Capitol Kentucky The research was supported by: Council on Undergraduate Research Summer Fellowship ABSTRACT A high energetic cost of adaptive immune defenses is assumed in theoretical discussions of immune responses in animals. Little quantitative data are available to test the assumption, however, especially for mammalian species. We tested the null hypotheses that 1) there is no difference between energy expenditure of challenged and passive cell-mediated and humoral immune systems and 2) there is no change in the cost and magnitude of a humoral immune response when a cell-mediated immune response is introduced. To test these hypotheses, we used humoral and cell-mediated immune-challenges as the independent variables. Using adult male old-field mice (Peromyscus polionotus), we measured antibody production, inflammation, metabolic rates, and organ masses to assess the energetic cost and energy trade-offs of cell-mediated and humoral immune responses, and interactions between them. Our results supported the assumption of a significant energetic cost of cell-mediated, but not humoral immune defense. More studies are needed to further evaluate the costs of adaptive immunity in mammals. | Undergraduate Research Home | College Home Page | Date Modified December 3, 2010