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1. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) has been commonly used to measure gene
expression in a number of research contexts, but the measured RNA
concentrations do not always represent the concentrations of active
proteins which they encode. This can be due to transcriptional regulation
or post-translational modifications, or localisation of immune
environments, as can occur during infection. However, in studies using
free-living non-model species, such as in ecoimmunological research, qPCR
may be the only available option to measure a parameter of interest, and
so understanding the quantitative link between gene expression and
associated effector protein levels is vital. 2. Here we use qPCR to
measure concentrations of RNA from mesenteric lymph node (MLN) and spleen
tissue, and multiplex ELISA of blood serum to measure circulating cytokine
concentrations in a wild population of a model species, Mus musculus
domesticus. 3. Few significant correlations were found between gene
expression levels and circulating cytokines of the same immune genes or
proteins, or related functional groups. Where significant correlations
were observed, these were most frequently within the measured tissue (i.e.
the expression levels of genes measured from spleen tissue were more
likely to correlate with each other rather than with genes measured from
MLN tissue, or with cytokine concentrations measured from blood). 4.
Potential reasons for discrepancies between measures, including
differences in decay rates and transcriptional regulation networks are
discussed. We highlight the relative usefulness of different measures
under different research questions, and consider what might be inferred
from immune assays.
143 views reported since publication in 2020.