ABSTRACT
This chapter explains about research laboratories from getting involved in immune studies involving birds of species other than chickens and has thus restricts the knowledge on the comparative aspects of avian immunology. The current state of knowledge on cellular immunity in three species of birds including turkeys, quails, and ducks. The cell-mediated immune (CMI) response to tuberculin and phytohemagglutinin (PHA) in chickens has been demonstrated to be a T-dependent reaction. The cutaneous basophil hypersensitivity (CBH) response of turkeys to PHA occurred 18 to 36 h following a single injection and was similar to that in chickens. However, the delayed hypersensitivity response to Mycobacterium avium (MA) and M. tuberculosis (MT) required a period of 2 to 3 weeks following initial sensitization. The wattle test originally developed in chickens cannot be used in the quail because the quail lacks an anatomic site equivalent to the wattle of the chicken.
