Sebaceous Glands of the Woolly Mammoth, Mammothus primigenius Blum.: Histological Evidence

Repin, V. E.; Taranov, Oleg S.; Ryabchikova, E. I.; Tikhonov, Alexei; Pugachev, V. G.

doi:10.1023/b:dobs.0000046662.43270.66

Cited by 18 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…Woolly mammoths evolved a suite of morphological adaptations to life in the extreme cold, including small ears and tails, a long thick coat, and, unlike other elephants, numerous large sebaceous glands, which are thought to have helped repel water and improve insulation (Repin et al, 2004). Woolly mammoths also evolved a characteristic set of skeletal traits, including a high, domed skull with dorsally expanded parietals; an anterioposteriorly compressed skull; and a sloping back.…”

Section: Substitutions In Genes Associated With the Mammoth Body Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unlike the extant elephantids, which live in warm tropical and subtropical habitats, woolly mammoths lived in the extreme cold of the dry steppe-tundra where average winter temperatures ranged from À30 to À50 C (MacDonald et al, 2012). Woolly mammoths evolved a suite of adaptations for arctic life, including morphological traits such as small ears and tails to minimize heat loss, a thick layer of subcutaneous fat, long thick fur, and numerous sebaceous glands for insulation (Repin et al, 2004), as well as a large brown-fat deposit behind the neck that may have functioned as a heat source and fat reservoir during winter (Boeskorov et al, 2007;Fisher et al, 2012). They also likely possessed molecular and physiological adaptations in circadian systems (Bloch et al, 2013;Lu et al, 2010) and adipose biology (Liu et al, 2014;Nelson et al, 2014), similar to other arctic-adapted species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Elephantid Genomes Reveal the Molecular Bases of Woolly Mammoth Adaptations to the Arctic

et al. 2015

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Woolly mammoths and living elephants are characterized by major phenotypic differences that have allowed them to live in very different environments. To identify the genetic changes that underlie the suite of woolly mammoth adaptations to extreme cold, we sequenced the nuclear genome from three Asian elephants and two woolly mammoths, and we identified and functionally annotated genetic changes unique to woolly mammoths. We found that genes with mammoth-specific amino acid changes are enriched in functions related to circadian biology, skin and hair development and physiology, lipid metabolism, adipose development and physiology, and temperature sensation. Finally, we resurrected and functionally tested the mammoth and ancestral elephant TRPV3 gene, which encodes a temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential (thermoTRP) channel involved in thermal sensation and hair growth, and we show that a single mammoth-specific amino acid substitution in an otherwise highly conserved region of the TRPV3 channel strongly affects its temperature sensitivity.

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Section: Substitutions In Genes Associated With the Mammoth Body Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elephantid Genomes Reveal the Molecular Bases of Woolly Mammoth Adaptations to the Arctic

et al. 2015

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“…While it is debated that the local production of hC levels by sudoriferous (sweat) and sebaceous (sebum-secreting) glands in other animal species may affect the overall hC levels ( Pragst & Balikova, 2006 ; Russell et al, 2012 ; Salaberger et al, 2016 ; Yamanashi, 2018 ; Heimbürge, Kanitz & Otten, 2019 ), extant elephants lack sebum and sweat glands ( Wright & Luck, 1984 ; Lillywhite & Stein, 1987 ). Although the presence of sebaceous glands were reported in the extinct woolly mammoth ( Repin et al, 2004 ), and temporal and interdigital glands in extant elephants are considered as the modified apocrine and eccrine sweat glands, respectively ( Fowler & Mikota, 2006 ), the existence of true sweat and sebaceous glands in elephants has not yet been determined. Thus, the contribution of the hC produced locally through these glands may be negligible in the case of elephants.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The tail-tale of stress: an exploratory analysis of cortisol levels in the tail-hair of captive Asian elephants

Pokharel

Yoneda

Yanagi

et al. 2021

PeerJ

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Background Assessment of physiological states by measuring biomarkers, such as cortisol, has significantly contributed to the monitoring of health, welfare and management of animals. Immunoreactive cortisol in hair (hC) has been used widely for deciphering ‘stressful’ past-events in various wild and captive animals. However, no such studies have been done in long-lived mammals. Methods In this first exploratory study in elephants, we assessed (i) tail-hair growth rate (TGR) and (ii) hC levels in tail-hair samples from six captive Asian elephants from two zoos in Japan for comparing hC levels with zoo-keepers’ records of distinct biological events over a c.0.5–2.0-year period. Tail-hair samples were cut into segments (based on monthly growth rate), pulverized or minced and a validated cortisol enzyme-immunoassay employed to measure hC levels. Results When the hC levels of all individuals were compared with the keepers’ records, a posteriori, most of the high hC levels were found to be associated with ‘stressful’ or distinct behavioural events such as pathological (anaemia, colic infection, skin infection, oral sores), psychosocial (reluctance in entering the enclosure, presence of a calf) and husbandry practice-related (contact trials/ space sharing) conditions, indicating that tail-hair indeed can be a potential ‘retrospective’ calendar of physiological health of an animal. Conclusions Our observations open up the possibility of using the tail-hair as an alternative matrix to reconstruct the physiological history of elephants.

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“…To our knowledge histological analysis on soft tissue specimens from mammoth remains are extremely limited and most of them are of hair, skin, and muscle. So far the following tissues have been histologically analyzed: (1) mammoth hair from a Siberian mammoth (10,000 BP) from Moscow and skin from the Liakhov mammoth from the Paleontology Museum in Paris (Ryder, ), (2) internal organs as part of a lung, muscular tissue of the heart and part of the large intestine from the Shadrin mammoth (Subbotin and Tum, ), (3) eye skeletal muscle and right forefoot of an immature woolly mammoth from Alaska (Zimmerman and Tedford, ), (4) Psoas major muscle of the Magadam mammoth named Dima (Barnhart et al, ), (5) right cheek muscle from the Taimir mammoth and thigh muscle from Dima, the Magadam mammoth (Reyman and Goodman, ), (6) intestinal content of the Yuribey mammoth, and (7) the sebaceous glands and skin of a mammoth forefoot and a hind leg found in Yakutia, Siberia (Repin et al, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The mammoth eye from Alaska was adequately preserved with staining differentiation characteristic of skeletal muscle (Zimmerman and Tedford, ). Almost all skin layers, including hair follicles, hair, sebaceous and sweat glands, blood vessels, and collagen fibers were identified from the mammoth forefoot and a hind leg found in Yakutia, Siberia, although fixation and staining problems were mentioned during the processing of the samples (Repin et al, ). There has been only one report on tissues other than skin and muscle, that of the Shadrin mammoth.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Histology of a Woolly Mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) Preserved in Permafrost, Yamal Peninsula, Northwest Siberia

Papageorgopoulou

Link

Rühli

2015

The Anatomical Record

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In 2007, the baby woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) named Lyuba was found frozen in the Siberian tundra permafrost along the Yuribey River. She was proclaimed the best-preserved mammoth discovery. As part of the endoscopic examination of Lyuba, tissue samples of hair, muscle, and internal organs were taken. The sectioned biopsies were stained using standard and special histological stains. In general, the microscopic preservation of the tissue was good although no clearly identifiable cell nuclei were found by standard staining methods. Only a few cell nuclei could be identified in some samples when fluorescence stained with DAPI. The best-preserved structures were collagen fibers and muscle tissue, which gave some structural resemblance to the organs. In the hairs, evidence of pigmentation, a scaly surface, diagonal intra-hair structures, and a medulla were seen. Fat droplets could be identified with Sudan Red in the subcutaneous fat sample and in several organs. Bacteria were seen on the lumen side of the small intestine and caecum, and in the liver and lung tissue. In addition, fungi and pollen were seen in the lung sample. In the wall of the caecum and small intestine, blood vessels and nerves were visualized. Iron was identified in the vivianite sample. Some biopsies compared well structurally with the African elephant tissue sections. The histological findings support the theory that Lyuba drowned in muddy water. The microscopic tissue preservation and cell nuclei destruction indicate that Lyuba's body underwent at least one freeze-thaw cycle. Anat Rec, 298:1059Rec, 298: -1071Rec, 298: , 2015. V C 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Sebaceous Glands of the Woolly Mammoth, Mammothus primigenius Blum.: Histological Evidence

Cited by 18 publications

References 2 publications

Elephantid Genomes Reveal the Molecular Bases of Woolly Mammoth Adaptations to the Arctic

Elephantid Genomes Reveal the Molecular Bases of Woolly Mammoth Adaptations to the Arctic

The tail-tale of stress: an exploratory analysis of cortisol levels in the tail-hair of captive Asian elephants

Histology of a Woolly Mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) Preserved in Permafrost, Yamal Peninsula, Northwest Siberia

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