Comparative analysis of precipitating antibodies in White Rock and Fayoumi hens injected with bovine serum albumin or crude mite extract with resulting effects on northern fowl mite, Ornithonyssus sylviarum (Acari: Macronyssidae) population densities.

Precipitating antibody concentration responses to crude northern fowl mite extract (CME) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) injections were compared in White Rock and Fayoumi hens with two-dimensional immunoelectrophoresis and rocket electrophoresis. The effect of CME injections on northern fowl mite population development was also determined. White Rock and Fayoumi hens developed similar antibody concentrations in response to intramuscular injections of BSA according to serum samples analyzed with two-dimensional immunoelectrophoresis. Rocket electrophoresis analyses of pooled serum samples showed significant differences between slopes of White Rock and Fayoumi pools for CME and BSA injections, suggesting differences in antibody-antigen interactions. Fayoumi hens injected with CME, 78, 50, and 14 days prior to experimental infestation with 2,000 northern fowl mites/bird supported significantly fewer mites than BSA-injected hens, although mite populations were low on both treatment groups. Injections of CME had no effect on mite population development on White Rock hens, even though CME-specific antibodies were detected. Although White Rock hens supported significantly greater mite numbers than Fayoumi hens, the difference was not attributed to anti-CME antibody activity alone.