Haematological and immunological characteristics of eastern hellbenders (<i>Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis</i>) infected and co-infected with endo- and ectoparasites

Hopkins, William A.; Fallon, Jesse A.; Coe, Brittney H.; Jachowski, Catherine M. Bodinof

doi:10.1093/conphys/cow002

Cited by 19 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…Our results are similar to studies of eastern hellbenders (Hopkins et al., ) and humans (O'Shaughnessy et al., ) indicating that bactericidal capacity is maintained and repeatable for several weeks when plasma is frozen at −80°C. Plasma bactericidal capacity degrades more quickly when frozen at −40°C (Liebl & Martin, ) and will degrade when frozen at −80°C for 7–13 months (DuRant, ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…When optimizing the assay for use in ectotherms, it is important to select a biologically relevant temperature for the bacteria‐killing phase of the assay and to potentially adjust the length of the bacteria‐killing step. For aquatic vertebrates, the average water temperature during the time of sampling can work well (Hopkins et al., ) as can previously published body temperature (this study). At relatively cooler bacteria‐killing temperatures, an hour long incubation period may be used rather than the more typical 30‐min period (Hopkins et al., ).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…For aquatic vertebrates, the average water temperature during the time of sampling can work well (Hopkins et al., ) as can previously published body temperature (this study). At relatively cooler bacteria‐killing temperatures, an hour long incubation period may be used rather than the more typical 30‐min period (Hopkins et al., ).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…Our study is one of the few (but see French & Neuman‐Lee, ; Hopkins et al., ) to validate an ecoimmunological assay for a reptile or amphibian despite the urgent need to study these rapidly declining groups of evolutionarily diverse and ecologically important animals (Gibbons et al., ). We found that the BKA could be used to evaluate innate immunity in snapping turtles using fresh or frozen plasma.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Repeatability and sources of variation of the bacteria‐killing assay in the common snapping turtle

Beck

Thompson

2017

J Exp Zool Pt A

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Research on reptile ecoimmunology lags behind that on other vertebrates, despite the importance of such studies for conservation and evolution. Because the innate immune system is highly conserved across vertebrate lineages, assessments of its performance may be particularly useful in reptiles. The bacteria-killing assay requires a single, small blood sample and quantifies an individual's ability to kill microorganisms. The assay's construct validity and interpretability make it an attractive measure of innate immunity, but it requires proper optimization and sample storage. We optimized this assay for the common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina) to assess the repeatability of the assay and the effects of freezing and thawing on bactericidal capacity. We determined whether age (adult female and hatchlings) or incubation temperature influenced bactericidal capacity. We found that the assay was repeatable and that freezing plasma samples for 6 weeks at -80°C did not decrease bactericidal capacity nor did a single 30-min thaw and subsequent refreezing. However, we detected subtle interassay variation and results from one assay were 5-6% greater than those from the other two. Adult females had significantly greater bactericidal ability than hatchlings and we found no relationship between incubation temperature and bactericidal capacity. This assay is a useful tool in snapping turtles and may have applicability in other reptiles. However, species-specific optimization is required to ensure that variation among individuals exceeds interassay variation. Consideration should be given to optimization conditions that facilitate comparisons between or within groups, particularly groups that differ considerably in bactericidal capacity.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Repeatability and sources of variation of the bacteria‐killing assay in the common snapping turtle

Beck

Thompson

2017

J Exp Zool Pt A

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“…Indeed, the percentage lymphocyte in the blood is lowest during the spring, which is the peak of the mating season. Infection is associated with lymphopenia in other vertebrates, including salamanders (Davis et al, 2008;Hopkins et al, 2016), suggesting that decreased blood lymphocytes are important for combatting immune challenges.…”

Section: No Relationship Of Hpa/i Activity With Reproductive Investmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing hypotheses about individual variation in plasma corticosterone in free-living salamanders

Thomas

Magyan

Freeman

et al. 2017

Journal of Experimental Biology

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In vertebrates, many responses to stress as well as homeostatic maintenance of basal metabolism are regulated by plasma glucocorticoid hormones (GCs). Despite having crucial functions, levels of GCs are typically variable among individuals. We examined the contribution of several physiological factors to individual variation in plasma corticosterone (CORT) and the number of corticotropinreleasing hormone (CRH) neurons in the magnocellular preoptic area of the brain in free-living Allegheny Mountain dusky salamanders. We addressed three hypotheses: the current-condition hypothesis, the facilitation hypothesis and the trade-off hypothesis. Differential white blood cell count was identified as a strong contributor to individual variation in baseline CORT, stress-induced CORT and the number of CRH neurons. In contrast, we found no relationship between CORT (or CRH) and body condition, energy stores or reproductive investment, providing no support for the current-condition hypothesis or the tradeoff hypothesis involving reproduction. Because of the difficulties of interpreting the functional consequences of variation in differential white blood cell counts, we were unable to distinguish between the facilitation hypothesis or the trade-off hypothesis related to immune function. However, the strong association between differential white blood cell count and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal/interrenal (HPA/I) activation suggests that a more thorough examination of immune profiles is critical to understanding variation in HPA/I activation.

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Amphibians

Forzán¹

2023

Pathology and Epidemiology of Aquatic Animal Diseases for Practitioners

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Haematological and immunological characteristics of eastern hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) infected and co-infected with endo- and ectoparasites

Cited by 19 publications

References 87 publications

Repeatability and sources of variation of the bacteria‐killing assay in the common snapping turtle

Repeatability and sources of variation of the bacteria‐killing assay in the common snapping turtle

Testing hypotheses about individual variation in plasma corticosterone in free-living salamanders

Amphibians

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