Hematologic and Plasma Biochemistry Values in White Storks (Ciconia ciconia)

Szabó, Zoltán; Beregi, A.; Vajdovich, Péter; Abonyi‐Tóth, Zsolt; Mátrai, Eszter; Pazár, Péter; Gaál, T.

doi:10.1638/2008-0164.1

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The nestlings of our study showed a very high proportion of eosinophiles (15%) in agreement with the 22% reported for free-living tree swallow nestlings ( Tachycineta bicolor ; [41]). In the past we also found high percentage of eosinophiles in nestlings of white stork ( Ciconia ciconia ; 22%; [49]) and black stork ( Ciconia nigra ; [50]), in fact, they were much higher than in adults of the same species [49], [51], [52]. High eosinophiles values suggest the presence of parasites in the nesting materials.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 70%

The PHA Test as an Indicator of Phagocytic Activity in a Passerine Bird

et al. 2013

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Several techniques in ecological immunology have been used to assess bird immunocompetence thus providing useful information to understand the contribution of the immunological system in life-history decisions. The phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)-skin test has been the most widely employed technique being interpreted as the sole result of T lymphocytes proliferation and hence used to evaluate acquired immunological capacity. However, the presence of high numbers of phagocytic cells in the swelling point has cast some doubt about such an assumption. To address this issue, we collected blood from 14 days-old nestlings of spotless starling (Sturnus unicolor), administered subcutaneous PHA immediately after and then measured the swelling response 24 hours later. Differential counts of white blood cells suggested that an intense development of acquired immunological defences was taking place. The phagocytic activity of both heterophiles and monocytes was also very intense as it was the swelling response. Moreover, our results show, for the first time in birds, a positive relationship between the phagocytic activity of both kinds of cells and the swelling response. This broadens the significance of the PHA test from reflecting T lymphocytes proliferation -as previously proposed but still undetermined in vivo- to evaluate phagocytosis as well. In other words, our data suggest that the PHA swelling response may not be considered as the only consequence of processes of specific and induced immunity –T lymphocytes proliferation- but also of constitutive and nonspecific immunity –heterophiles and monocytes phagocytosis. We propose the extensive use of PHA-skin test as an optimal technique to assess immunocompetence.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 70%

The PHA Test as an Indicator of Phagocytic Activity in a Passerine Bird

et al. 2013

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“…To determine the clinical relevance of the observed differences between the reference and test methods for each sample, the results from the Natt-Herricks-Tic® method and the reference method (Natt-Herrick method) were compared with avian reference intervals from the current literature [14–20]. The results were classified as within, below (leukopenia) or above (leukocytosis) the reference interval.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

White blood cell count in birds: evaluation of a commercially available method

Carisch¹,

Stirn²,

Hatt³

et al. 2019

BMC Vet Res

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BackgroundTo conduct a hematological analysis of avian blood samples, standard automated cell counting is unreliable because all avian blood cells are nucleated. Therefore, quantitative white blood cell counting in birds is still performed manually, whereby the Natt-Herrick method is widely used in veterinary laboratories. The aim of this study was to evaluate a new commercially available single test system for avian white blood cell counting, the Natt-Herricks-Tic®, which would allow easy in-house analysis by clinicians or technicians. A total of 40 avian ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) blood samples from 24 different species were included in the study. To assess method agreement, each blood sample was analyzed for total white blood cell count with the test method and the Natt-Herrick reference method. To determine the imprecision of the reference method and the Natt-Herricks-Tic® method, the noncorrected white blood cell count was determined ten consecutive times from one avian EDTA blood sample for each method.ResultsThe Natt-Herricks-Tic® method performed well concerning staining quality and countability of the granulocytes by the hemocytometer. In the agreement study, the Natt-Herricks-Tic® method showed a small proportional systematic error with a small positive mean bias of 282 white blood cells/μL but had wide 95% limits of agreement (− 4683 cells/μL to 5227 cells/μL), indicating random error. The precision study resulted in a coefficient of variation of 16% for the Natt-Herricks-Tic® method (the mean ± standard deviation: 9.7 × 103/μL ± 1.5 × 103/μL) and 23% (the mean ± standard deviation: 7.9 × 103/μL ± 1.8 × 103/μL) for the reference method.ConclusionsThe Natt-Herricks-Tic® method showed acceptable precision for a manual method and demonstrated good agreement with the reference method. It can be recommended as a reliable and suitable method for determining white blood cell counts in avian EDTA blood if nonstatistical quality control measures are used in the daily routine. The application of individual reference intervals for the interpretation of white blood cell counts in birds may improve the diagnostic performance of this important analyte in a clinical setting.

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“…These studies determined that the levels of the studied elements and pollutants were generally lower than the risk thresholds for birds but were a useful baseline for biomonitoring the levels of measured contaminants in the study areas. These baseline references can also be found for physiological blood parameters of the white stork (Szabó et al 2010) and the Oriental white stork Ciconia boyciana (Han et al 2016). Other, notable, studies presented data on the wider topic of the influence of pollutants on white stork physiology (Baos et al 2006;Blas and Baos 2008;Muñoz-Arnanz et al 2008;Sáez et al 2008a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationships between pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, blood parameters and oxidative stress of white stork Ciconia ciconia chicks in Poland

Siekiera,

Jankowiak,

Siekiera

et al. 2024

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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The white stork Ciconia ciconia is a bird species located at the top of the trophic pyramid in grassland and wetland ecosystems. This charismatic species is susceptible to pesticides and their environmental residues. In 2016, we collected blood samples from 114 white stork chicks across Western and Southern Poland. Chicks were sexed by molecular analysis and aged by development pattern. We studied the relationship between the concentration of pesticides (beta-HCH, heptachlor, aldrin, endrin, 4.4′-DDD, 4.4′-DDE and 4.4′-DDT) and of PCB in the chicks’ blood with blood morphology and biochemistry parameters in the blood. The mean (± SD) values of concentrations of above detection level pesticides were: for (1) beta-HCH 4.139 ± 19.205; (2) 4.4′-DDE 9.254 ± 91.491 and additionally (3) PCB 16.135 ± 44.777 ppb. We found negative relationships between beta-HCH and oxidative stress enzyme activity in the blood, between beta-HCH and leukocyte concentration and between 4.4′-DDE and catalase activity. We also found a positive relationship between the concentration of pesticides in blood and the age of chicks. Interestingly, we found a higher concentration of PCB in the blood of male stork chicks than in female stork chicks. We provide more evidence that the presence of pesticides in the environment can be a strong stress factor, shaping the health status of birds.

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Hematologic and Plasma Biochemistry Values in White Storks (Ciconia ciconia)

Cited by 10 publications

References 26 publications

The PHA Test as an Indicator of Phagocytic Activity in a Passerine Bird

The PHA Test as an Indicator of Phagocytic Activity in a Passerine Bird

White blood cell count in birds: evaluation of a commercially available method

Relationships between pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, blood parameters and oxidative stress of white stork Ciconia ciconia chicks in Poland

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