scholarly journals Costly parasite resistance: a genotype-dependent handicap in sand lizards?

2005 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 375-377 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mats Olsson ◽  
Erik Wapstra ◽  
Thomas Madsen ◽  
Beata Ujvari ◽  
Carl Rugfelt
Keyword(s):  
Body Condition ◽  
Blood Stream ◽  
Encounter Rate ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Adaptive Immune ◽  
Reduced Body ◽  
Histocompatibility Complex ◽  
Secondary Infections ◽  
Specific Restriction ◽  
Lacerta Agilis

Male sand lizards ( Lacerta agilis ) with a specific restriction fragment length polymorphism fragment in their major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genotype (‘O-males’) are more resistant to ectoparasites (a tick, Ixodes ricinus ) than are males that lack this fragment (‘NO-males’). However, emerging evidence suggests that such adaptive immune responses are costly, here manifested by reduced body condition and a compromised defence against secondary infections by haemoprotid parasites that use the ticks as vectors. Subsequent to tick encounter, O-males suffer from a higher leucocyte–erythrocyte ratio, and higher haemoprotid parasitaemia, in particular in relation to vector encounter rate. Furthermore, O-males (i.e. successful tick defenders) with more haemoprotid parasites remaining in their blood stream were in better body condition, whereas this did not apply in NO-males, demonstrating that the adaptive immunoreaction can—in the short term—be energetically even more costly than being moderately parasitized. In agreement with Zahavian handicap theory, O-males had a (marginally) higher reproductive success than males that lacked this fragment.

scholarly journals The use of a ‘first-wave’ model to study the effect of nutrition on ovarian follicular dynamics and ovulation rate in the sheep

Reproduction ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 140 (6) ◽  
pp. 865-874 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Viñoles ◽  
B Paganoni ◽  
K M M Glover ◽  
J T B Milton ◽  
D Blache ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Condition ◽  
Wave Model ◽  
Ovulation Rate ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Metabolic Hormones ◽  
Follicular Waves ◽  
Follicular Wave ◽  
The Third ◽  
High Concentrations ◽  
Follicular Dynamics

We have developed an experimental model in which groups of ewes are simultaneously experiencing the first ovarian follicular wave of their oestrous cycle. We used this ‘first-wave model’ in a 2×2 factorial experiment (ten ewes per group) to study the effect of body condition (BC) and a short-term supplement on follicular dynamics and ovulation rate. The ‘first-wave’ was established by giving ewes three injections of prostaglandin (PG), 7 days apart. The 6-day supplement (lupin grain) began 2 days after the second PG injection and continued until the third. Follicles were studied by ultrasound, and blood was sampled to measure glucose and hormones. The supplement increased (P<0.01) the concentrations of glucose, insulin and leptin, decreased FSH concentrations (P<0.01) and tended to increase oestradiol concentrations (P=0.06). The supplement tended to increase the number of 3 mm follicles (P=0.06). Compared with low-BC ewes, high-BC ewes had more follicular waves (P<0.05), higher concentrations of insulin, leptin and IGF1 (P<0.05) and tended to have higher FSH concentrations (P=0.09). Leptin and insulin concentrations remained high until the end of supplementation in high-BC ewes, whereas they decreased after the third day of supplementation in low-BC ewes. In conclusion, high concentrations of metabolic hormones in fat ewes are associated with the development of more follicular waves. When a supplement is superimposed on this situation, changes in glucose and metabolic hormones allow more follicles to be selected to ovulate.

Do researchers impact their study populations? Assessing the effect of field procedures in a long term population monitoring of sea kraits

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 365-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Fauvel ◽  
François Brischoux ◽  
Marine Jeanne Briand ◽  
Xavier Bonnet
Keyword(s):  
Body Condition ◽  
New Caledonia ◽  
Stress Hormones ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Population Monitoring ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Head Morphology

Long term population monitoring is essential to ecological studies; however, field procedures may disturb individuals. Assessing this topic is important in worldwide declining taxa such as reptiles. Previous studies focussed on animal welfare issues and examined short-term effects (e.g. increase of stress hormones due to handling). Long-term effects with possible consequences at the population level remain poorly investigated. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of widely used field procedures (e.g. handling, marking, forced regurgitation) both on short-term (hormonal stress response) and on long-term (changes in body condition, survival) scales in two intensively monitored populations of sea kraits (Laticauda spp.) in New Caledonia. Focusing on the most intensively monitored sites, from 2002 to 2012, we gathered approximately 11 200 captures/recaptures on 4500 individuals. Each snake was individually marked (scale clipping + branding) and subjected to various measurements (e.g. body size, head morphology, palpation). In addition, a subsample of more than 500 snakes was forced to regurgitate their prey for dietary analyses. Handling caused a significant stress hormonal response, however we found no detrimental long-term effect on body condition. Forced regurgitation did not cause any significant effect on both body condition one year later and survival. These results suggest that the strong short-term stress provoked by field procedures did not translate into negative effects on the population. Although similar analyses are required to test the validity of our conclusions in other species, our results suggest distinguishing welfare and population issues to evaluate the potential impact of population surveys.

scholarly journals Individual and demographic consequences of reduced body condition following repeated exposure to high temperatures

Ecology ◽  
2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet L. Gardner ◽  
Tatsuya Amano ◽  
William J. Sutherland ◽  
Mark Clayton ◽  
Anne Peters
Keyword(s):  
High Temperatures ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Repeated Exposure ◽  
Reduced Body

scholarly journals Uropygial gland and bib colouration in the house sparrow

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregorio Moreno-Rueda
Keyword(s):  
Body Condition ◽  
Passer Domesticus ◽  
Uropygial Gland ◽  
Short Term ◽  
House Sparrows ◽  
Gland Size ◽  
Plumage Colouration ◽  
Preen Oil ◽  
Male House

Birds frequently signal different qualities by plumage colouration, mainly during mating. However, plumage colouration is determined during the moult, and therefore it would indicate the quality of individual birds during the moult, not its current quality. Recent studies, however, suggest that birds could modify plumage colouration by using cosmetic preen oil. In this study, I show that bib colouration is related to uropygial gland size and body condition in male house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Moreover, I conducted an experiment in which a group of sparrows were inoculated with an antigen, mimicking an illness. In control birds, short-term changes in bib colouration were related to both body condition and change in uropygial gland size. Therefore, birds that spent more preen oil (thus, reducing uropygial gland size), showed a greater colouration change. However, bib colouration did not change with use of preen oil in experimental birds inoculated with the antigen. That is, the simulated illness cancelled the effect of preen oil on bib colouration. Given that the experiment did not affect preen oil production, this finding suggests that the immune challenge provoked a change in the composition of preen oil, affecting its cosmetic properties. In short, the results of this study suggest that (1) male house sparrows produce cosmetic preen oil that alters the colouration of their bibs; (2) the more effort in preening, the more change in bib colouration; and (3) in this way, bib colouration has the potential to signal current health status, since less healthy birds showed less capacity to change bib colouration.

scholarly journals Modulation of TAP-dependent antigen compartmentalization during human monocyte-to-DC differentiation

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 839-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marius Döring ◽  
Hanna Blees ◽  
Nicole Koller ◽  
Sabine Tischer-Zimmermann ◽  
Mathias Müsken ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
T Lymphocytes ◽  
Antigen Processing ◽  
Human Monocyte ◽  
Antigen Uptake ◽  
Adaptive Immune ◽  
Histocompatibility Complex ◽  
Adaptive Immune Cells ◽  
Early Endosomes ◽  
Secondary Lymphoid Organs

Abstract Dendritic cells (DCs) take up antigen in the periphery, migrate to secondary lymphoid organs, and present processed antigen fragments to adaptive immune cells and thus prime antigen-specific immunity. During local inflammation, recirculating monocytes are recruited from blood to the inflamed tissue, where they differentiate to macrophages and DCs. In this study, we found that monocytes showed high transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP)–dependent peptide compartmentalization and that after antigen pulsing, they were not able to efficiently stimulate antigen-specific T lymphocytes. Nevertheless, upon in vitro differentiation to monocyte-derived DCs, TAP-dependent peptide compartmentalization as well as surface major histocompatibility complex I turnover decreased and the cells efficiently restimulated T lymphocytes. Although TAP-dependent peptide compartmentalization decreased during DC differentiation, TAP expression levels increased. Furthermore, TAP relocated from early endosomes in monocytes to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and lysosomal compartments in DCs. Collectively, these data are compatible with the model that during monocyte-to-DC differentiation, the subcellular relocation of TAP and the regulation of its activity assure spatiotemporal separation of local antigen uptake and processing by monocytes and efficient T-lymphocyte stimulation by DCs.

A comparison of the effects of body condition and short-term food restriction on the feeding behaviour of sheep

1996 ◽  
Vol 1996 ◽  
pp. 174-174
Author(s):  
A.M. Sibbald
Keyword(s):  
Food Intake ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Feeding Behaviour ◽  
Food Restriction ◽  
Term Effect ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Daily Food ◽  
Long Term Effect ◽  
Single Meal

Voluntary food intake is generally inversely related to body condition or fatness in mature sheep (Foot, 1972). Since the intake of pelleted diets by housed sheep consists of a number of discrete feeding bouts or 'meals' (e.g. Bermudez et al., 1989), the relatively long-term effect of body condition on intake will be achieved through changes in feeding behaviour at the level of a single meal. The aim of this experiment was to compare the effects of body condition and short-term food restriction on meal patterns in sheep, to investigate the mechanism by which body condition influences daily food intake.

scholarly journals The Immune System as Drug Target

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. III.S12145
Author(s):  
Darren R. Flower
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
Drug Targets ◽  
Adaptive Immune System ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Human Immune System ◽  
Adaptive Immune ◽  
Histocompatibility Complex ◽  
Human Immunity ◽  
Human Immune ◽  
Adaptive Immune Systems

The immune system is perhaps the largest yet most diffuse and distributed somatic system in vertebrates. It plays vital roles in fighting infection and in the homeostatic control of chronic disease. As such, the immune system in both pathological and healthy states is a prime target for therapeutic interventions by drugs–-both small-molecule and biologic. Comprising both the innate and adaptive immune systems, human immunity is awash with potential unexploited molecular targets. Key examples include the pattern recognition receptors of the innate immune system and the major histocompatibility complex of the adaptive immune system. Moreover, the immune system is also the source of many current and, hopefully, future drugs, of which the prime example is the monoclonal antibody, the most exciting and profitable type of present-day drug moiety. This brief review explores the identity and synergies of the hierarchy of drug targets represented by the human immune system, with particular emphasis on the emerging paradigm of systems pharmacology.

scholarly journals Myeloid and Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells and Cancer – New Insights

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (19) ◽  
pp. 3324-3340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya Gulubova ◽  
Koni Vancho Ivanova ◽  
Mehmed Hadzhi ◽  
Dimitur Chonov ◽  
Maria Magdalena Ignatova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dendritic Cells ◽  
Immune Responses ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Tumour Microenvironment ◽  
Mhc I ◽  
Cross Presentation ◽  
Adaptive Immune ◽  
Histocompatibility Complex ◽  
T Helpers

Dendritic cells (DCs) use effective mechanisms to combat antigens and to bring about adaptive immune responses through their ability to stimulate nӓive T cells. At present, four major cell types are categorised as DCs: Classical or conventional (cDCs), Plasmacytoid (pDCs), Langerhans cells (LCs), and monocyte-derived DCs (Mo-DCs). It was suggested that pDCs, CD1c+ DCs and CD141+ DCs in humans are equivalent to mouse pDCs, CD11b+ DCs and CD8α+ DCs, respectively. Human CD141+ DCs compared to mouse CD8α+ DCs have remarkable functional and transcriptomic similarities. Characteristic markers, transcription factors, toll-like receptors, T helpers (Th) polarisation, cytokines, etc. of DCs are discussed in this review. Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) I and II antigen presentation, cross-presentation and Th polarisation are defined, and the dual role of DCs in the tumour is discussed. Human DCs are the main immune cells that orchestrate the immune response in the tumour microenvironment.

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