Hematology, Biochemistry Reference Intervals, and Morphological Description of Peripheral Blood Cells for a Captive Population of Crocodylus intermedius in Colombia

Barajas-Valero, Steven; Rodríguez-Almonacid, Cristian Camilo; Rojas-Sereno, Zulma Esperanza; Moreno-Torres, Carlos; Matta, Nubia E.

doi:10.3389/fvets.2021.694354

Cited by 9 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 31 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This positive/negative relationship between analytes and size was also observed when analyzed at the intraindividual level, because most of the analytes varied across time likely influenced by age/size, with most of them decreasing over time. This trend has also been reported in other species of crocodiles ( 11 ) as well as in other reptiles ( 39 ). However, it is not clear how and when these analytes shift and what variables influence them (i.e., physiological, environmental).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

“…Mean values in American crocodiles for WBC, eosinophils % and abs, and monocytes % were higher than those reported in Orinoco crocodiles ( 11 , 32 ), freshwater crocodiles ( 32 ), mugger crocodiles ( 33 ), Nile crocodiles ( 10 ), and Morelet's crocodiles ( 34 ) both captive and wild ( Supplementary Table 4 ). More frequent pathogen exposure across environments and inter/intraspecific competition/aggression could be the main factors that explain higher leucocyte values reported for American crocodiles in South Florida, fairly relating to the values reported in wild heterospecific (Nile crocodiles).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

“…However, visual analyses are limiting as it is known that these species do not exhibit early signs of discomfort, stress, or illness ( 10 ). More proactive/preventive methods such as blood testing are proven to be efficient to assess overall health conditions ( 11 ). Nonetheless, the current lack of baseline hematological and biochemical reference data or RI for many crocodylian species limits the application of this type of diagnostic tool to define criteria for health assessments ( 12 , 13 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Hematology and biochemistry reference intervals for American crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) in South Florida

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) is considered a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List across its range and classified as locally threatened in several countries. There is a lack of knowledge involving hematological and physiological parameters in American crocodile populations, limiting our understanding of what are considered “normal” blood analyte results for the species and how to link them with health assessments. In this study, we analyzed 40 hematological and biochemical parameters and estimated reference intervals (RIs) for 35 of them based on 436 clinically healthy wild American crocodiles caught in South Florida between 2015 and 2021. Crocodiles were captured across three areas with different levels of human influence [low = Everglades National Park (ENP), medium = Biscayne Bay Estuary (BBE), and high = Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant (TP)]. There was very strong-to-strong evidence for an effect of where animals were caught on five analytes: basophils %, phosphorus, proportion of (pr) alpha-2 globulins, absolute count (abs) of gamma globulins, and corticosterone, so no reference values were estimated but general statistics are presented and discussed. From the remaining analytes, we found no evidence that sex or size class had an effect on red blood cell (RBC), azurophils and monocytes abs, triglycerides, and albumin abs. However, we did find moderate-to-strong evidence that sex influenced azurophils % and size class influenced white blood cell (WBC), heterophils %, monocytes %, basophils abs, creatine phosphokinase (CPK), potassium, glucose, bile acids, alpha-1 globulin abs, and alpha-2 globulin pr and abs. Finally, there was strong evidence that both sex and size class influenced PCV, lymphocytes % and abs, eosinophils % and abs, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), calcium, sodium, chloride, total protein, albumin/globulin (A/G) ratio, albumin pr, alpha-1 globulin, and beta globulin abs. Intraspecific analysis showed that size is the variable that most influenced analytes explaining up to 29% of the variation, which relates to our findings based on intraindividual analysis. We compared our results with blood parameters reported for conspecifics as well as closely related species and discussed implication of those results for clinical diagnosis and American crocodile conservation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Hematology and biochemistry reference intervals for American crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) in South Florida

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Endogenous factors are related to the genetic and physiological conditions of fish, which determine the blood physiological and biochemical characteristics of fish and control the normal range of blood physiological and biochemical indicators. The external environmental factors directly or indirectly affect the fluctuation of fish blood physiological and biochemical indices by stimulating or inhibiting fish metabolism 42,175,312 …”

Section: Influencing Factors Of Fish Haematological Indexesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…INFLUENCING FACTORS OF FISH HAEMATOLOGICAL INDEXESMany factors may affect the physiological and biochemical indices of fish blood, which can be roughly divided into two categories: (1) the internal factors of the fish itself and (2) the external environmental factors required for fish survival. Endogenous factors are related to the genetic and physiological conditions of fish, which determine the blood physiological and biochemical characteristics of fish and control the normal range of blood physiological and biochemical indicators.The external environmental factors directly or indirectly affect the fluctuation of fish blood physiological and biochemical indices by stimulating or inhibiting fish metabolism 42,175,312. …”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of haematology parameters for health management in fish farms

Chen

Luo

2022

Reviews in Aquaculture

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Farmed fish are a promising source of high-quality and sustainable protein. However, the production of farmed fish products that meet food safety standards is one of the major public health challenges worldwide. Therefore, food safety management in fish farms has recently garnered increasing attention. However, the detection of health parameters in fish is currently lacking. Haematology, an approach that is widely used in humans, provides a reliable assessment of health status in a non-lethal and lowcost way. Nevertheless, comprehensive, systemic and standard haematological parameters have not yet been established in farmed fish. Here, we provide a summary of the recent advancements in haematology health indicators in fish. Generally, haematological parameters are based on physiological and biochemical indices in blood. After a global review of haematology in fish, we analysed the research progress and current trends in haematology indicators in farmed fish, and explored their potential application for healthy farming. Furthermore, we discuss the internal and external environmental factors that also affect blood physiological and biochemical indices. Finally, we discuss the trends and future challenges for the application of haematology in fish. Collectively, the topics discussed in this review highlight the predictive and severely underrated value of haematological parameters in fish farming.

show abstract

Host species and age‐specific variation on Hepatozoon prevalence and its effect on body condition in two Neotropical crocodiles

Marzal,

Flores‐Saavedra,

Magallanes

et al. 2024

Wildlife Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Many populations of species belonging to the order Crocodilia are threatened due to illegal trafficking, indiscriminate hunting, and habitat loss and degradation affecting crocodilian health and parasitic load. Although several studies have revealed that crocodiles, caimans, and alligators are frequently infected by Hepatozoon spp., the results from studies exploring the costs of these apicomplexan parasites on the health of their reptilian hosts are still scarce and with inconclusive results. Here, we molecularly assessed the prevalence and genetic diversity of Hepatozoon spp. to explore their possible influence on body condition in captive individuals of two species of Neotropical crocodilians with conservation threats, the spectacled caiman Caiman crocodilus and the American crocodile Crocodylus acutus. Fourteen percent of spectacled caimans were infected by H. caimani, whereas no American crocodiles showed infection. The prevalence of Hepatozoon in spectacled alligators varied along age, where subadult individuals were the most frequently parasitized. Surprisingly, the body condition of infected individuals was significantly higher than body condition of uninfected spectacled caimans, which suggests greater negative effects of the infection in individuals of poor quality. Also, the body condition of subadult individuals was significantly higher than body condition of juveniles of both alligator species, likely reflecting differences in the occupancy of habitats with higher resource abundance, or variations in the nutritional values of the diet between these age classes. These outcomes provide valuable information on disease ecology for developing conservation strategies and the management conservation of wildlife populations of these species.

show abstract

Hematology, Biochemistry Reference Intervals, and Morphological Description of Peripheral Blood Cells for a Captive Population of Crocodylus intermedius in Colombia

Cited by 9 publications

References 31 publications

Hematology and biochemistry reference intervals for American crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) in South Florida

Hematology and biochemistry reference intervals for American crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) in South Florida

Application of haematology parameters for health management in fish farms

Host species and age‐specific variation on Hepatozoon prevalence and its effect on body condition in two Neotropical crocodiles

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About