Cortisol/dehydroepiandrosterone ratio in saliva: Endocrine biomarker for chronic stress in pigs?

Rauterberg, Sally; Schwennen, Cornelia; Ligges, Uwe; Herbrandt, Swetlana; Kemper, Nicole; Schmicke, Marion

doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2019.01.022

Cited by 7 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Many studies on human subjects have used salivary measures of cortisol and DHEA(S) [ 95 , 102 , 128 ]. Saliva has also been the sample type of choice in many ex situ animal studies that measure cortisol [ 22 , 123 ], but is not commonly used in field studies due to difficulty of collection. Handling stress during collection has been shown to be less of a concern with saliva than with blood samples.…”

Section: General Methodological Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most researchers implement techniques that encourage chewing, e.g., for rhesus monkeys [ 123 ] and shelter dogs [ 148 ]. Species that are easily trainable may willingly allow swabbing or offer passive drool to the investigator, e.g., pigs [ 22 ], Indian rhino [ 125 ], Asian elephant [ 126 ], and Great Apes [ 127 ]. Contamination should be kept to a minimum, as substances in the mouth prior to sampling (e.g., breast milk and blood) may influence results [ 131 ].…”

Section: General Methodological Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In terms of environmental conditions, Peric and colleagues’ [ 26 ] experimental study determined that deteriorating conditions led to an increase in the cortisol:DHEA ratio in dairy cows. In an experimental study of piglets, those housed under conditions aimed to enhance welfare (e.g., access to outdoor areas and no tail docking) exhibited higher salivary DHEA, lower salivary cortisol and lower cortisol:DHEA ratios than piglets reared in housing systems with more stressors (e.g., no outdoor access and castration without anesthesia) [ 22 ]. Finally, as compared to horses exposed to a traditional stable management style, those that experienced natural boarding practices had significantly lower cortisol:DHEA ratios and cortisol concentrations, as well as significantly higher DHEA concentrations [ 27 ].…”

Section: Glucocorticoid:dhea Ratiomentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this review article, we provide an overview of the HPA axis, describe the primary actions of glucocorticoids and DHEA(S), discuss the pathophysiological effects of HPA dysfunction, and consider how the ratio of glucocorticoids to DHEA(S) may be applied to animal welfare research. However, we should note that while the cortisol:DHEA(S) ratio has been employed in studies of human development, psychology and immunology, there has been relatively little research on how this ratio may provide insight into the physical, mental and emotional health of non-human animals [ 15 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. Therefore, we will explore the benefits of integrating this biomarker into animal welfare monitoring schemes and discuss potential methods for applying this metric in managed care settings.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Beyond Glucocorticoids: Integrating Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) into Animal Welfare Research

Whitham

Bryant

Miller

2020

Animals

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Animal welfare researchers are committed to identifying novel measures for enhancing the quality of life of individual animals. Recently, welfare scientists have emphasized the need for tracking multiple indicators of an animal’s behavioral, emotional and mental health. Researchers are currently focused on integrating non-invasive physiological biomarkers to gain insight into an individual’s welfare status. Most commonly, the animal welfare community has analyzed glucocorticoid hormones and their metabolites as a measure of stress. While glucocorticoids provide valuable information about hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity, there are limitations to utilizing these hormones as the sole measure of long-term stress and welfare. Other biomarkers, such as dehydroepiandrosterone and its sulfate ester—collectively referred to as DHEA(S)—help provide a more complete picture of HPA activity. DHEA(S) counteracts the effects glucocorticoids by having anti-aging, immune-enhancing and neuroprotective properties. Recent studies have examined the ratio of glucocorticoids to DHEA(S) as a way to better understand how the HPA axis is functioning. There is evidence that this ratio serves as an indicator of immune function, mental health, cognitive performance and overall welfare. We review studies that employed the glucocorticoid:DHEA(S) ratio, outline methodological considerations and discuss how researchers can integrate glucocorticoids, DHEA(S) and the glucocorticoid:DHEA(S) ratio into welfare assessments.

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Section: General Methodological Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: General Methodological Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Glucocorticoid:dhea Ratiomentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Beyond Glucocorticoids: Integrating Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) into Animal Welfare Research

Whitham

Bryant

Miller

2020

Animals

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“…En los manejos previos al sacrificio los animales se enfrentan a numerosos factores estresantes en un periodo de tiempo relativamente corto; un nivel elevado de estrés que desencadena efectos bioquímicos importantes que condicionan las respuestas fisiológicas de los animales (Fels et al 2019;Dalla Costa at al. 2017;Bertram et al 2010).…”

Section: Variables Fisiológicasunclassified

Evaluación de variables del manejo pre-sacrificio de cerdos asociadas con los cambios de pH de la carne, en una planta de sacrificio comercial colombiana

Márquez¹

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El pre sacrificio es una etapa crítica de la cadena cárnica porcina, que afecta la calidad ética e instrumental de la carne. Los actores de la cadena tienden a culpar a las etapas anteriores y / o posteriores por los problemas de bienestar de los animales. Los contextos de producción son denominados multifactoriales, por lo que es importante estimar diferentes relaciones entre las variables de acuerdo a las condiciones locales. El objetivo del estudio fue Evaluar variables del manejo pre sacrificio asociadas con cambios de pH en cerdos bajo condiciones comerciales en una planta de sacrificio. Se realizó un estudio de corte transversal en una planta de sacrificio comercial (Antioquia, Colombia), que evaluó 3.156 cerdos ((113,5 ± 12,9 Kg PV) (134 viajes)). Se evaluó la interacción humano-animal durante el desembarque y la conducción al área de sacrificio, variables fisiológicas de estrés, contusiones cutáneas en la canal y el pHu de la carne. Los resultados mostraron correlación entre variaciones fisiológicas de cortisol (µg/dL), proteína total (g/L), creatinina (mmol/L), lactato (mmol/L), creatin fosfoquinasa (U/L) con condiciones de manejo y variaciones según el tipo de camión utilizado entre 1 y 2 pisos. Las variables tiempo de ayuno, tiempo de transporte, parar durante el viaje y golpear a los cerdos explicaron el 45% de las variaciones en el pHu de la carne de los cerdos.

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Finding biomarkers of experience in animals

Babington,

Tilbrook,

Maloney

et al. 2024

J Animal Sci Biotechnol

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At a time when there is a growing public interest in animal welfare, it is critical to have objective means to assess the way that an animal experiences a situation. Objectivity is critical to ensure appropriate animal welfare outcomes. Existing behavioural, physiological, and neurobiological indicators that are used to assess animal welfare can verify the absence of extremely negative outcomes. But welfare is more than an absence of negative outcomes and an appropriate indicator should reflect the full spectrum of experience of an animal, from negative to positive. In this review, we draw from the knowledge of human biomedical science to propose a list of candidate biological markers (biomarkers) that should reflect the experiential state of non-human animals. The proposed biomarkers can be classified on their main function as endocrine, oxidative stress, non-coding molecular, and thermobiological markers. We also discuss practical challenges that must be addressed before any of these biomarkers can become useful to assess the experience of an animal in real-life.

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Cortisol/dehydroepiandrosterone ratio in saliva: Endocrine biomarker for chronic stress in pigs?

Cited by 7 publications

References 9 publications

Beyond Glucocorticoids: Integrating Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) into Animal Welfare Research

Beyond Glucocorticoids: Integrating Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) into Animal Welfare Research

Evaluación de variables del manejo pre-sacrificio de cerdos asociadas con los cambios de pH de la carne, en una planta de sacrificio comercial colombiana

Finding biomarkers of experience in animals

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