Partial characterization and distribution of the chemokines CCL25 and CCL28 in the bovine system

Chemokines have been shown to play a major role in the efficient accumulation and localization of leukocytes to tissues via interactions with their cognate receptors. The chemokine/chemokine receptor pairs CCL25/CCR9 and CCL28/CCR10 have been shown to play a vital role in the trafficking of antibody secreting cells to mucosal tissues. Although the importance of these chemokines in mediating effective immune responses is well described, the distribution of these molecules has not been previously characterized in the cow. In this report we describe the mRNA expression patterns of these chemokine/chemokine receptor pairs in the bovine system. Quantitative mRNA analysis shows that these molecules exhibit unique expression patterns and suggest that these chemokines play a major role in the accumulation of receptor bearing cells to specific mucosal tissues.