Reference intervals and values for fecal cortisol, aldosterone, and the ratio of cortisol to dehydroepiandrosterone metabolites in four species of cetaceans

Miller, Lance J.; Lauderdale, Lisa K.; Walsh, Michael T.; Bryant, Jocelyn L.; Mitchell, Kevin; Mellen, Jill D.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0250331

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Among those increased metabolites, adenosine 3'-monophosphate has the function of inhibiting protein synthesis (58). Aldosterone and 21-deoxycortisol are the important physiological stress indicators (59)(60)(61). Guanosine and its derivatives have potent inhibitory property against viruses (62,63).…”

Section: Fecal Metabolites Altered By Horse Botfly Infestationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Intestinal Microbial Metabolites in the Immunity of Equine Animals Infected With Horse Botflies

Yu-jun²,

Wang³

et al. 2022

Front. Vet. Sci.

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The microbiota and its metabolites play an important role in regulating the host metabolism and immunity. However, the underlying mechanism is still not well studied. Thus, we conducted the LC-MS/MS analysis and RNA-seq analysis on Equus przewalskii with and without horse botfly infestation to determine the metabolites produced by intestinal microbiota in feces and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to the immune response in blood and attempted to link them together. The results showed that parasite infection could change the composition of microbial metabolites. These identified metabolites could be divided into six categories, including compounds with biological roles, bioactive peptides, endocrine-disrupting compounds, pesticides, phytochemical compounds, and lipids. The three pathways involving most metabolites were lipid metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and biosynthesis of other secondary metabolites. The significant differences between the host with and without parasites were shown in 31 metabolites with known functions, which were related to physiological activities of the host. For the gene analysis, we found that parasite infection could alarm the host immune response. The gene of “cathepsin W” involved in innate and adaptive immune responses was upregulated. The two genes of the following functions were downregulated: “protein S100-A8” and “protein S100-A9-like isoform X2” involved in chemokine and cytokine production, the toll-like receptor signaling pathway, and immune and inflammatory responses. GO and KEGG analyses showed that immune-related functions of defense response and Th17 cell differentiation had significant differences between the host with and without parasites, respectively. Last, the relationship between metabolites and genes was determined in this study. The purine metabolism and pyrimidine metabolism contained the most altered metabolites and DEGs, which mainly influenced the conversion of ATP, ADP, AMP, GTP, GMP, GDP, UTP, UDP, UMP, dTTP, dTDP, dTMP, and RNA. Thus, it could be concluded that parasitic infection can change the intestinal microbial metabolic activity and enhance immune response of the host through the pathway of purine and pyrimidine metabolism. This results will be a valuable contribution to understanding the bidirectional association of the parasite, intestinal microbiota, and host.

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Section: Fecal Metabolites Altered By Horse Botfly Infestationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Intestinal Microbial Metabolites in the Immunity of Equine Animals Infected With Horse Botflies

Yu-jun²,

Wang³

et al. 2022

Front. Vet. Sci.

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“…Through positive reinforcement training, such behaviors can become a stress-free and reliable means of collecting important information [22] that forms the cornerstone of successful preventative medical programs for animals [30]. Most marine mammal welfare research has centered on dolphins, exemplified by the development of the C-Well welfare assessment [31] and the multi-institutional Cetacean Welfare Study [24,[32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39]. Progress with pinnipeds has lagged [40].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health and Welfare Benefits of Computerized Cognitive Enrichment in California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus) at the US Navy Marine Mammal Program

Winship,

McClain,

Ramos

et al. 2024

Animals

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Cognitive enrichment is becoming more prevalent in professional marine mammal facilities. Research with dolphins has suggested that such enrichment provides more welfare benefits than enrichment that does not incorporate cognitive challenge. However, there is little research supporting the use of cognitive enrichment as a means to improve the welfare of sea lions. Recently, a novel form of technological cognitive enrichment, the Enclosure Video Enrichment (EVE) system, was introduced to a population of California sea lions at the US Navy’s Marine Mammal Program as a means to enhance welfare. Two of the initial focal animals introduced to EVE were selected based on their health history and the possible benefits of cognitive enrichment in improving health measures. To evaluate this, information regarding the animals’ consumption of their offered diet was compared to other animals in the population of similar age and the absence of a similar health history. Subsequently, the total diet consumption of the targeted animals was evaluated in the two years prior to the introduction to EVE and compared to the total diet consumption during the initial 2 years of regular EVE sessions. There was a significant decrease in the number of days in which the sea lions did not consume their entire offered diet in the two years after implementing regular EVE sessions, an increase in participation and performance of voluntary husbandry behaviors, and a reduction in the number of days animals were clinically ill. This study provides evidence of cognitive enrichment as a management tool to improve animal health and welfare as well as performance in training sessions.

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“…Fecal samples can also be obtained from bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops truncatus ). This is usually achieved by the catheterization of the rectum [ 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 ]. In order to obtain fecal samples, animals must be trained to lie on their backs and remain there.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saliva and Blood Cortisol Measurement in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus): Methodology, Application, and Limitations

Rickert

Simon

Fersen

et al. 2021

Animals

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A central task of zoos and aquaria is the frequent and accurate assessment of their animals’ welfare. Recently, important steps have been made, such as the introduction of animal welfare evaluation tools and welfare decision trees. To determine animal welfare, it is not only important to collect life history data, such as longevity and reproductive success, but also for experienced observers or caretakers to conduct behavioral observations on a regular basis to assess animals’ emotional state. To physiologically validate welfare observations, glucocorticoid levels are usually assessed, as they are a common indicator of stress. While, for many animals, these levels can be easily determined via fecal or hair samples, for cetaceans, the levels are usually determined via blood samples. As blood samples cannot be taken very frequently and the process may cause stress to the animals (if the samples are not taken following medical training), other techniques, such as the measurement of health biomarkers (especially cortisol, which can be measured in saliva), have become the focus of cetacean stress research. However, there are two problems associated with saliva measurements in cetaceans: saliva might either be diluted with pool water or be contaminated by fodder fish, as frozen fish usually contains high levels of cortisol. In our study, we investigated how saliva cortisol levels are connected to blood cortisol levels and how saliva cortisol can be influenced by fodder fish. We examined saliva and blood samples in eleven bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) kept in an outdoor and indoor facility in Germany. Furthermore, we assessed the cortisol levels of different kinds of fodder fish. Our data show that, although saliva cortisol values are elevated under stress and arousal, they seem not to be correlated with blood cortisol values. We also show that, after feeding, saliva cortisol values are increased up to 100-fold. Our results suggest that saliva cortisol measurements in dolphins have to be conducted and considered with care, as they can easily be contaminated. Moreover, it is important to use the right laboratory method in order to specifically detect cortisol; in our study, we conducted reliable tests, using LC-MS/MS.

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Reference intervals and values for fecal cortisol, aldosterone, and the ratio of cortisol to dehydroepiandrosterone metabolites in four species of cetaceans

Cited by 6 publications

References 36 publications

The Role of Intestinal Microbial Metabolites in the Immunity of Equine Animals Infected With Horse Botflies

The Role of Intestinal Microbial Metabolites in the Immunity of Equine Animals Infected With Horse Botflies

Health and Welfare Benefits of Computerized Cognitive Enrichment in California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus) at the US Navy Marine Mammal Program

Saliva and Blood Cortisol Measurement in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus): Methodology, Application, and Limitations

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