BACKGROUND Oral vaccination with Mycobacterium bovis Bacille of Calmette and Guerin (BCG) has provided protection against M. bovis to badgers both experimentally and in the field. There is also evidence suggesting that the persistence of live BCG within the host is important for maintaining protection against TB. Here we investigated the capacity of badger inductive mucosal sites to absorb and maintain live BCG. The targeted mucosae were the oropharyngeal cavity (tonsils and sublingual area) and the small intestine (ileum). RESULTS We showed that significant quantities of live BCG persisted within badger in tissues of vaccinated badgers for at least 8 weeks following oral vaccination with only very mild pathological features and induced the circulation of IFNγ-producing mononuclear cells. The uptake of live BCG by tonsils and drainage to retro-pharyngeal lymph nodes was repeatable in the animal group vaccinated by oropharyngeal instillation whereas those vaccinated directly in the ileum displayed a lower frequency of BCG detection in the enteric wall or draining mesenteric lymph nodes. No faecal excretion of live BCG was observed, including when BCG was delivered directly in the ileum. CONCLUSIONS The apparent local loss of BCG viability suggests an unfavorable gastro-enteric environment for BCG in badgers, which should be taken in consideration when developing an oral vaccine for use in this species.

中文翻译：

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通过口咽滴注或直接在回肠接种疫苗的欧洲badge（Meles meles）中活牛分枝杆菌卡介苗的检测和IFN-γ应答。

背景技术用Calmette and Guerin的牛分枝杆菌的Bacille Bacille（BCG）口服疫苗为badge和实验性provided提供了针对牛分枝杆菌的保护。也有证据表明，宿主体内活卡介苗的持续存在对于维持针对结核的保护很重要。在这里，我们调查了r诱导性粘膜部位吸收和维持活卡介苗的能力。靶向粘膜是口咽腔（扁桃体和舌下区域）和小肠（回肠）。结果我们显示，仅在非常轻微的病理特征的口服疫苗接种后，大量的活BCG至少在接种的badge组织中持续存在至少8周，并诱导了产生IFNγ的单核细胞的循环。在通过口咽滴注接种的动物组中，扁桃体吸收活细胞卡介苗并引流至咽后淋巴结是可重复的，而在回肠中直接接种的动物组在肠壁或引流肠系膜淋巴结中检测到的BCG频率较低。没有观察到活的BCG的粪便排泄，包括当BCG直接在回肠中递送时。结论BCG活力的明显局部丧失表明badge中BCG的肠胃环境不利，在开发用于该物种的口服疫苗时应考虑到这一点。