Effects of repeated stress during pregnancy in ewes on the behavioural and physiological responses to stressful events and birth weight of their offspring

Roussel, Sabine; Hemsworth, P.H.; Boissy, Alain; Duvaux-Ponter, Christine

doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2003.11.006

Cited by 69 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…However, some studies report an increased behavioural reactivity (e.g. Erhard and Rhind 2004;Roussel et al 2004), which, in keeping with rodent studies, was more pronounced in males than females. Other studies suggest that lambs are less reactive to stress (e.g.…”

Section: Animal Behaviour and Welfaresupporting

confidence: 70%

“…Other late-gestation treatments of the ewe that are associated solely with stress (social isolation or aversive handling by humans) have also reported an increase in birthweight (Roussel et al 2004;Hild et al 2011). In goats, aversive handling in pregnancy led to placental alterations and increased fetal loss compared with gentle or minimal handling (Baxter et al 2016), whereas positive handling improved neonatal behavioural development.…”

Section: Animal Behaviour and Welfarementioning

confidence: 99%

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Epigenetics and developmental programming of welfare and production traits in farm animals

Sinclair

Rutherford

Wallace

et al. 2016

Reprod. Fertil. Dev.

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Abstract. The concept that postnatal health and development can be influenced by events that occur in utero originated from epidemiological studies in humans supported by numerous mechanistic (including epigenetic) studies in a variety of model species. Referred to as the 'developmental origins of health and disease' or 'DOHaD' hypothesis, the primary focus of large-animal studies until quite recently had been biomedical. Attention has since turned towards traits of commercial importance in farm animals. Herein we review the evidence that prenatal risk factors, including suboptimal parental nutrition, gestational stress, exposure to environmental chemicals and advanced breeding technologies, can determine traits such as postnatal growth, feed efficiency, milk yield, carcass composition, animal welfare and reproductive potential. We consider the role of epigenetic and cytoplasmic mechanisms of inheritance, and discuss implications for livestock production and future research endeavours. We conclude that although the concept is proven for several traits, issues relating to effect size, and hence commercial importance, remain. Studies have also invariably been conducted under controlled experimental conditions, frequently assessing single risk factors, thereby limiting their translational value for livestock production. We propose concerted international research efforts that consider multiple, concurrent stressors to better represent effects of contemporary animal production systems.

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Section: Animal Behaviour and Welfaresupporting

confidence: 70%

Section: Animal Behaviour and Welfarementioning

confidence: 99%

Epigenetics and developmental programming of welfare and production traits in farm animals

Sinclair

Rutherford

Wallace

et al. 2016

Reprod. Fertil. Dev.

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show abstract

“…In a study that examined the effects of repeated stress throughout pregnancy on lamb birth weight and physiology, ewes that were exposed to isolation and dogs birthed lambs that had heavier birth weights and higher basal cortisol levels than lambs born to non-stressed mothers (Roussel et al 2004). In another study, nutritionally stressed ewes gave birth to lambs with significantly lower birth weights than lambs born to non-nutritionally stressed mothers (Meza-Herrera et al 2015).…”

Section: Fitness Consequences Of Stress: Follicular Development and Omentioning

confidence: 99%

Influences of the stress endocrine system on the reproductive endocrine axis in sheep (Ovis aries)

Narayan

Parisella

2017

Italian Journal of Animal Science

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The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis systems are inversely related in humans and animals. Although livestock animals, such as sheep (Ovis aries), tend to be well adapted to their environment, it is known that the livestock production processes subject animals to a multitude of physical and psychological stressful stimuli that have the potential to elevate the HPA axis activity. Chronic stress is one of the major challenges in sheep production, as it is difficult to detect and can result in prolonged dysfunction of the HPA axis, causing downstream negative physiological effects such as immunosuppression, increased susceptibility to disease and reproductive dysfunction. The elevation of HPA axis activity during chronic stress has been suggested as the primary neuroendocrine mechanism underlying the aetiology of reproductive dysfunction in sheep. Research in sheep has demonstrated that glucocorticoids act on the HPG axis at the level of the hypothalamus and hypophyseal portal system to decrease gonadotrophin secretion and at the level of the pituitary gland to reduce responsiveness and sensitivity of gonadotroph cells and their receptors to GnRH. Sheep farming enterprises rely on the breeding efficacy of ewes to optimise lambing percentage and reproductive success in order to ensure a profitable business. This review discusses the influences of the HPA axis on the HPG axis and defines any significant reproductive function consequences caused by stress in ewes and places them into perspective for sheep management and productivity.ARTICLE HISTORY

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“…The first focusses on actions on the livestock environment to make it less constrictive for the animal [74]. The second intervenes directly on the animal to modulate the manner in which it may experience environmental events, either by acting on its own history (response to stressful events occuring at a more or less early stage [66]), or by selecting animals on the basis of desired emotional profiles [16]. This second strategy aims at directing the adaptive abilities of individual animals according to the constraints specific to the production system.…”

Section: Disruptive Situations: the Limits Of Biological Regulation Smentioning

confidence: 99%

Adaptive abilities of the females and sustainability of ruminant livestock systems. A review

Blanc

Bocquier²,

Agabriel

et al. 2006

Anim. Res.

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-In a systemic approach, the breeder can be considered as the decisional component of the livestock system, whereas animals are usually depicted to be part of its biotechnical component. The animal itself is a biological system whose ability to survive, grow, reproduce and cope with the environnement and livestock practices play a major role in the ability of the livestock system to sustain. In such a conceptual representation of the system, the reproductive females draw a peculiar attention since they determine in a great part the productivity and the durability of the system through their abilities to maintain their own production level (milk production, numeric productivity) and to save their reproductive efficiency (repeated pregnancies and lactations) over years. Considering the animal level and its lifespan, it is clear that the abilities to adapt rely on behavioural and physiological regulatory processes. The study of the biological mechanisms involved in the adaptation to undernutrition is particularly interesting since regulatory processes implied in energy metabolism may interfere directly or indirectly with the reproductive function, and consequently, with the durability of the livestock system. A biological significance of such relationships between nutrition and reproduction is given that they allow the female to be informed about the associated risk of entering a productive process facing the uncertainty of the nutritional context. Although the general mechanisms implied in the ability to adapt to the underfeeding constraint are conserved among ruminants, the thresholds (or priorities) may largely differ according to the breed within the same species. Hence, in order to evaluate the ability of the ruminant livestock systems to perpetuate in hard environments (maintaining their production levels) or to assess sustainable objectives (opening bushy landscapes by increasing grazing pressure), animals' inherent adaptive potentialities have to be well known. Résumé -Capacités adaptatives des femelles et durabilité des systèmes d'élevage. Synthèse bibliographique. Dans une représentation systémique du système d'élevage, l'éleveur incarne la composante décisionnelle du système, tandis que l'animal constitue, avec la ressource, sa composante biotechnique. L'animal lui-même peut être considéré comme un système biologique soumis à un environnement contraignant, dont les aptitudes à survivre, croître, se reproduire et s'adapter jouent un rôle fondamental dans la pérennité du système d'élevage. Les femelles reproductrices tiennent une place particulière dans cette représentation car non seulement elles déterminent une large part de la productivité du système par leur propre niveau de production (production laitière, productivité numérique), mais elles en assurent également sa reproductibilité au cours du temps (investissement reproductif). A l'échelle de l'individu et de sa durée de vie, les modalités d'adaptation reposent sur des processus de régulations comportementales et physiologiques. De tels pro...

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Effects of repeated stress during pregnancy in ewes on the behavioural and physiological responses to stressful events and birth weight of their offspring

Cited by 69 publications

References 48 publications

Epigenetics and developmental programming of welfare and production traits in farm animals

Epigenetics and developmental programming of welfare and production traits in farm animals

Influences of the stress endocrine system on the reproductive endocrine axis in sheep (Ovis aries)

Adaptive abilities of the females and sustainability of ruminant livestock systems. A review

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