Assessment of chronic stress in sheep (part I): The use of cortisol and cortisone in hair as non-invasive biological markers

Stubsjøen, Solveig Marie; Bohlin, Jon; Dahl, Ellen; Knappe-Poindecker, M.; Fjeldaas, T.; Lepschy, Michael; Palme, Rupert; Langbein, Jan; Ropstad, Erik

doi:10.1016/j.smallrumres.2015.09.015

Cited by 54 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Further, autonomous production of cortisol in human keratinocytes has been confirmed in the study of Cirillo and Prime (2011). Later studies (Keckeis et al 2012;Stubsjoen et al 2015) also suggest a possibility of local production of cortisol and intrafollicular autonomous cortisol synthesis. In addition, canine hair follicle cells in vitro are able to metabolise progesterone to cortisol (Bamberg et al 2005).…”

Section: Stress Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 74%

Analysis of cortisol in dog hair - a potential biomarker of chronic stress: a review

Mesarčová¹,

Kottferová²,

Skurková³

et al. 2017

Vet. Med.

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Cortisol, which is produced in the adrenal glands, is an endogenous glucocorticoid hormone that delivers its hormonal message to cells by acting on glucocorticoid receptors. It is one of the main stress hormones responsible for stress responses in animals and humans, and its overproduction is characteristic of certain diseases. While acute stress disorder can be evaluated by means of measuring the cortisol concentration in blood and urine, chronic stress disorder can be detected by monitoring the cortisol concentration in fur or hair. Hair collection is simple, inexpensive and non-invasive, and can be performed easily and rapidly; thus, it appears to be a suitable method for determining the level of stress in dogs from shelters, abused dogs or dogs involved in different types of animal interactions. Since it is a relatively new method, monitoring cortisol in hair or fur requires further research in order to definitively prove its efficacy, and possibly to determine reference range values for different breeds of dogs.

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Section: Stress Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 74%

Analysis of cortisol in dog hair - a potential biomarker of chronic stress: a review

Mesarčová¹,

Kottferová²,

Skurková³

et al. 2017

Vet. Med.

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“…Hair cortisol as a biomarker of chronic stress in animals has received increasing attention, and studies have been carried out on for instance cattle, goats and sheep (Gonzalez-de-la-Vara et al, 2011;Battini et al, 2015;Stubsjøen et al, 2015;Salaberger et al, 2016). Hair is a biomaterial that may accumulate GC over weeks to months (Gow et al, 2010) and is thought to be insensitive to the impact of acute stress, including stress caused by handling during sampling procedures.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A major route of integration has been hypothesized to be through diffusion from blood during the growth period of the hair shaft (Gow et al, 2010;Russell et al, 2012). However, several recent studies suggest that local cortisol production may participate as well (Keckeis et al, 2012;Stubsjøen et al, 2015;Salaberger et al, 2016). The source of this local cortisol production is believed to be a parallel, but peripheral, stress axis within the hair follicles (Ito et al, 2005, Slominski et al, 2007.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring hair cortisone concentration as a novel tool to assess chronic stress in sheep with tick-borne fever

Stubsjøen

Sørheim

Chincarini

et al. 2018

Small Ruminant Research

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A B S T R A C TTick-borne fever (TBF), caused by the bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum and transmitted by the tick Ixodes ricinus, has considerable consequences for animal welfare and economy in the sheep industry. Non-invasive, objective methods to quantify chronic stress are needed in order to evaluate the welfare impact of disease. The aim of this study was 1) to evaluate hair cortisol (HC) and hair cortisone (HCn) as biomarkers of chronic stress in sheep with TBF and 2) to test whether there was an association between the development of TBF and concentrations of HC, HCn and faecal cortisol metabolites (FCM) and body weight. The experiment took place in an area with a high prevalence of TBF, and thirty lambs were used in the study. Wool samples were collected in Week 0, in Week 3 (before turn out on homeland spring pasture), in Week 6 (before turn out on summer rangeland pasture) and at the end of the summer (Week 15). Faecal samples were collected every week (ie. Week 0-6 and Week 15). Symptoms of TBF developed in 15 lambs, of which all recovered from the disease after treatment with antibiotics. HC levels decreased progressively, and significantly, between Week 0, 3, 6 and 15 (p < 0.001), while HCn only decreased from Week 0 to Week 3 (p < 0.001) and then remained stable between Week 3-15. FCM increased between Week 0 and 5 (p = 0.027), and a significant association was found between increased FCM levels in Week 5 and lambs developing clinical signs of TBF (p = 0.022). We also found an association between lambs developing clinical signs of TBF and elevated HCn levels in Week 6 (p = 0.013). A slightly lower weight gain at later time points (Week 6 and 15) were found in the affected lambs compared to clinically healthy lambs. Our results indicate local production and/or metabolism of glucocorticoids in the hair follicles. This study strengthens our previous finding of a potential merit of hair cortisone as a biomarker of chronic stress in sheep.

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“…sheep) tend to be well adapted to aspects such as environmental conditions, feed availability and disease (Qureshi 2012), studies have demonstrated that stressors associated with animal production negatively affect reproductive physiology (Dobson et al 2012). Sheep are prey animals and their natural response to stress is to mask any obvious behavioural signs to avoid predation (Stubsjøen et al 2015). This makes prolonged or chronic stress difficult to detect in sheep farming practices (Aggarwal & Upadhyay 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influences of the stress endocrine system on the reproductive endocrine axis in sheep (Ovis aries)

Narayan

Parisella

2017

Italian Journal of Animal Science

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The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis systems are inversely related in humans and animals. Although livestock animals, such as sheep (Ovis aries), tend to be well adapted to their environment, it is known that the livestock production processes subject animals to a multitude of physical and psychological stressful stimuli that have the potential to elevate the HPA axis activity. Chronic stress is one of the major challenges in sheep production, as it is difficult to detect and can result in prolonged dysfunction of the HPA axis, causing downstream negative physiological effects such as immunosuppression, increased susceptibility to disease and reproductive dysfunction. The elevation of HPA axis activity during chronic stress has been suggested as the primary neuroendocrine mechanism underlying the aetiology of reproductive dysfunction in sheep. Research in sheep has demonstrated that glucocorticoids act on the HPG axis at the level of the hypothalamus and hypophyseal portal system to decrease gonadotrophin secretion and at the level of the pituitary gland to reduce responsiveness and sensitivity of gonadotroph cells and their receptors to GnRH. Sheep farming enterprises rely on the breeding efficacy of ewes to optimise lambing percentage and reproductive success in order to ensure a profitable business. This review discusses the influences of the HPA axis on the HPG axis and defines any significant reproductive function consequences caused by stress in ewes and places them into perspective for sheep management and productivity.ARTICLE HISTORY

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Assessment of chronic stress in sheep (part I): The use of cortisol and cortisone in hair as non-invasive biological markers

Cited by 54 publications

References 35 publications

Analysis of cortisol in dog hair - a potential biomarker of chronic stress: a review

Analysis of cortisol in dog hair - a potential biomarker of chronic stress: a review

Exploring hair cortisone concentration as a novel tool to assess chronic stress in sheep with tick-borne fever

Influences of the stress endocrine system on the reproductive endocrine axis in sheep (Ovis aries)

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