The Metabolic Activity of Bursal and Thymic Cells

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Abstract
The O2 uptake of thymic and bursal lymphocytes from large bursa line, (LBL) and small bursa line (SBL) birds was studied in vitro. The O2 consumption of bursa and thymus cells significantly increased from 10-15 weeks of age. With the exception of the 13th week, the O2 consumption was significantly greater for the bursa cells from the LB line. Thymic cells were not affected by sera treatment. Birds were injected 2X a day beginning at hatch for 4 days with 7.5 mg testosterone propionate (TP) or cortisone acetate (CA), 2.5 mg TP or CA, and the carrier solution. The O2 consumption increased at different rates over a 35 day period for the TP and CA groups. Our data suggest TP may increase the metabolism of lymphoid cells, CA does not stimulate directly O2 consumption of bursa cells, and cells reseeding the bursa are metabolically active cells.