Use of the lipid emulsion system and Salmonella typhimurium mitogen adjuvant to stimulate IgG production in chickens.

Chickens were immunized with the lipid emulsion system and Salmonella typhimurium mitogen adjuvant for fowl plus synthetic peptides corresponding to the divergent amino acid sequences at the carboxyl terminus of each of two different alpha-tubulin isoforms from Arabidopsis thaliana. Antibodies were extracted from egg yolks and used in immunoblot assays to determine the time course of antibody production in two chickens. Specific immunoglobulin production increased 10-14 days after the primary injection in both chickens and reached peak levels shortly thereafter. Booster injections helped maintain IgG production, which eventually dropped off after the final injection.