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First published online March 16, 2007
Journal of Experimental Biology 210, 1123-1131 (2007)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2007
doi: 10.1242/jeb.02712

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Long flights do not influence immune responses of a long-distance migrant bird: a wind-tunnel experiment

Dennis Hasselquist^1,*, Åke Lindström¹, Susi Jenni-Eiermann², Anita Koolhaas³ and Theunis Piersma^3,4

¹ Department of Animal Ecology, Lund University, Ecology Building, S-22362 Lund, Sweden
² Swiss Ornithological Institute, CH-6204 Sempach, Switzerland
³ Department of Marine Ecology and Evolution, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), PO Box 59, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel, The Netherlands
⁴ Animal Ecology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, PO Box 14, 9750 AA Haren, The Netherlands

View larger version (11K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Fig. 1. The Primary (pre-treatment) and Secondary (post-treatment) humoral immune responses (means ± s.d.) to tetanus and diphtheria antigens in red knots subjected to different Experimental Treatments. The treatment was almost identical for all birds up to the Primary response (see text). The week before the Secondary response was measured, Flyers (N=6) flew the equivalent of 1500 km in a wind tunnel. Failed Flyers (N=5) were birds originally assigned as Flyers that refused to fly for long periods in the wind tunnel. Controls (N=8) did not fly in the wind tunnel. The long flights had no detectable effect on the humoral immune response of the birds. Humoral immune responses were measured as the antigen-specific antibody response using a kinetic ELISA. A higher antibody titer against a specific antigen was detected as a faster colour change over time [measured in milli Optical Densities (mOD) min–1], which is equivalent to more antibodies specifically bound to the antigen.

View larger version (4K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Fig. 2. The cell-mediated immune response (mean ± s.d.), measured as PHA-induced wing-web swelling, in red knots subjected to different Experimental Treatments (as in Fig. 1). The long flights had no detectable effect on the cell-mediated immune response of the birds.

View larger version (5K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Fig. 3. Baseline corticosterone levels (means ± s.d.) before (PreTreat) and after (PostTreat) the Flight Treatment in red knots. Flyers (N=6) flew the equivalent of 1500 km in a wind tunnel. Failed Flyers (N=5) were birds originally assigned as Flyers that refused to fly for long periods in the tunnel. Controls (N=8) did not fly in the wind tunnel. The long flights had no detectable effects on the corticosterone levels.

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