CLINICAL AND HEMATOLOGICAL CHANGES IN SHEEP INDUCED BY Escherichia coli LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE

Abstract

Organic response to infection is characterized by a systemic reaction known as acute phase response (APR). In order to know the effect of the administration of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on physiological, hematological and biochemical variables, 10 sheep weighing 45 ± 5 kg were divided in two groups: Experimental group treated with 3 doses of 1 μg.kg-1 LPS and control group treated with saline solution (SS) at the same frequency as experimental group. Body temperature (BT°), heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) were monitored. Blood samples for hemogram and enzyme activity for aspartate amino transferase (AST) and gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) were collected between 1 and 24 h post-LPS.LPS-treated sheep presented mean values of BT°, HR and RR higher than those observed in control sheep. At 4 and 8 hours post-injection (hpi) of LPS the leukocyte count was associated with lymphopenia, followed by leukocytosis at 24 hours. No changes were observed in the activity of AST and GGT enzymes. The results characterize APR induced by LPS in sheep, representing a useful model to study cardiovascular, hematological and biochemical responses to infection.