2016
DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2016-0010
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Temperature-independent, seasonal fluctuations in immune function of the Mojave Desert Tortoise (Gopherusagassizii)

Abstract: As long-lived reptiles, Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii, Cooper 1861) are expected to make substantial energetic investments in immune-defense. This species also has many adaptations to living in an arid environment characterized by seasonal extremes in temperature and resource-availability. By housing tortoises at a controlled, constant ambient temperature, we quantified predominantly temperature-independent seasonal fluctuations in innate immune function and circulating leukocytes in a reptile. W… Show more

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Cited by 26 publications
(32 citation statements)
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“…Similar seasonal changes in innate immunity have also been demonstrated in G. agassizii (Sandmeier et al. ). While a seasonal pattern was present in immunity, the thermal and temporal contingencies of immune acclimation remain unclear (e.g., how quickly does seasonal acclimation occur?).…”
Section: Introductionsupporting
confidence: 77%
“…Similar seasonal changes in innate immunity have also been demonstrated in G. agassizii (Sandmeier et al. ). While a seasonal pattern was present in immunity, the thermal and temporal contingencies of immune acclimation remain unclear (e.g., how quickly does seasonal acclimation occur?).…”
Section: Introductionsupporting
confidence: 77%
“…Innate immunity for most vertebrates is comprised of a variety of nonspecific molecules and cells that serve as the first line of defense against pathogens (Janeway et al, ; Zimmerman, Vogel, et al, ). Measures of innate cells and molecules such as lysozymes (Thammasirirak et al, ), leukocytes (Christopher, Berry, Henen, & Nagy, ; Sandmeier et al, ), antimicrobial proteins (Chattopadhyay et al, ), natural antibodies (Hunter et al, ; Sandmeier et al, ), and phagocytic B cells (Zimmerman et al, ) have been used to evaluate innate reactions in Mojave desert tortoises and other turtles. However, these studies found the results to be highly context dependent, as patterns of innate immunity were reported to change in response to temperature (Zapata et al, ), season (Origgi, ; Sandmeier et al, ; Zimmerman, Paitz, et al, ), and other physiological and environmental factors (Zimmerman, Vogel, et al, ).…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Extensive biomedical studies on humans and related species have greatly improved our understanding of how this system works (Brodin & Davis, ; Demas & Nelson, ) and helped guide the development of diagnostic assays and biomarkers used to measure immune responses to pathogens and diseases. Conversely, immune function in nonmammalian vertebrates has not been well studied (Bowden et al, ; Uller, Isaksson, & Olsson, ; Zimmerman, Paitz, Vogel, & Bowden, ), and their immune responses are likely influenced by many factors including metabolic capacity (Chen, Cuijuan, & Pu, ; Hsu, ), endocrine fluctuations (Martin, Weil, & Nelson, ), season (Bowden et al, ; Munoz & De la Fuente, ; Sandmeier, Horn, & Tracy, ), temperature (Goessling et al, ; Zapata, Varas, & Torroba, ), and other environmental conditions (Martin et al, ; Origgi, ).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In addition, even healthy animals show a large degree of individual variation in both differential white blood cell counts and BKA under controlled laboratory conditions (Sandmeier et al. ). Such individual variation may obscure patterns of changes that occur within a tortoise in response to mild infection.…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In a captive desert tortoise population, lymphocyte numbers increased in fall and winter, again suggesting an immune strategy acclimated to cooler temperatures (Sandmeier et al. ). Together, these data imply that lymphocyte function may acclimate well to cooler temperatures.…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%