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Tang H, Ge WW, Wei WH, Yang SM, Dai X. Food Grinding Behavior: A Review of Causality and Influential Factors. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:1865. [PMID: 38997977 PMCID: PMC11240756 DOI: 10.3390/ani14131865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Food waste is a common issue arising from grinding of food by experimental animals, leading to excessive food scraps falling into cages. In the wild, animals grind food by gnawing vegetation and seeds, potentially damaging the ecological environment. However, limited ecology studies have focused on food grinding behavior since the last century, with even fewer on rodent food grinding, particularly recently. Although food grinding's function is partially understood, its biological purposes remain under-investigated and driving factors unclear. This review aims to explain potential causes of animal food grinding, identify influencing factors, and discuss contexts and limitations. Specifically, we emphasize recent progress on gut microbiota significance for food grinding. Moreover, we show abnormal food grinding is determined by degree of excess normal behavior, emphasizing food grinding is not meaningless. Findings from this review promote comprehensive research on the myriad factors, multifaceted roles, and intricate evolution underlying food grinding behavior, benefiting laboratory animal husbandry and ecological environment protection, and identifying potential physiological benefits yet undiscovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Tang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (H.T.); (W.-W.G.); (W.-H.W.); (S.-M.Y.)
| | - Wei-Wei Ge
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (H.T.); (W.-W.G.); (W.-H.W.); (S.-M.Y.)
| | - Wan-Hong Wei
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (H.T.); (W.-W.G.); (W.-H.W.); (S.-M.Y.)
- Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
| | - Sheng-Mei Yang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (H.T.); (W.-W.G.); (W.-H.W.); (S.-M.Y.)
| | - Xin Dai
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (H.T.); (W.-W.G.); (W.-H.W.); (S.-M.Y.)
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Dai X, Han YX, Shen QY, Tang H, Cheng LZ, Yang FP, Wei WH, Yang SM. Effect of Food Restriction on Food Grinding in Brandt's Voles. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:3424. [PMID: 37958179 PMCID: PMC10647212 DOI: 10.3390/ani13213424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2023] [Revised: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Food grinding is supposed to be influenced by multiple factors. However, how those factors affecting this behavior remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the effect of food restriction on food grinding in Brandt's voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii), as well as the potential role of the gut microbiota in this process, through a comparison of the variations between voles with different food supplies. Food restriction reduced the relative amount of ground food to a greater extent than it lowered the relative food consumption, and altered the abundance of Staphylococcus, Aerococcus, Jeotgalicoccus, and Un--s-Clostridiaceae bacterium GM1. Fecal acetate content for the 7.5 g-food supply group was lower than that for the 15 g-food supply group. Our study indicated that food restriction could effectively inhibit food grinding. Further, Un--s-Clostridiaceae bacterium GM1 abundance, Aerococcus abundance, and acetate content were strongly related to food grinding. Variations in gut microbial abundance and short-chain fatty acid content induced by food restriction likely promote the inhibition of food grinding. These results could potentially provide guidance for reducing food waste during laboratory rodent maintenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Dai
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Yu-Xuan Han
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Qiu-Yi Shen
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Hao Tang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Li-Zhi Cheng
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Feng-Ping Yang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
| | - Wan-Hong Wei
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
- Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
| | - Sheng-Mei Yang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009, China; (X.D.); (Y.-X.H.); (Q.-Y.S.); (H.T.); (L.-Z.C.); (F.-P.Y.); (W.-H.W.)
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Liao SS, Liu W, Cao J, Zhao ZJ. Territory aggression and energy budget in food-restricted striped hamsters. Physiol Behav 2022; 254:113897. [PMID: 35788009 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2022.113897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Revised: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Food resource availability is one of the most important factors affecting interindividual competition in a variety of animal species. However, the energy budget and territory aggression strategy of small mammals during periods of food restriction remain uncertain. In this study, metabolic rate, body temperature, territory aggression behavior, and fat deposit were measured in male striped hamster (Cricetulus barabensis) restricted by 20% of ad libitum food intake with or without supplementary methimazole. Serum thyroid hormone (tri-iodothyronine, T3 and thyroxine, T4), and cytochrome c oxidase (COX) activity in liver, brown adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle, were also measured. Attack latency, total attack times and duration, and the interval duration between attacks of resident hamsters were not significantly changed during food restriction, which was not significantly affected by supplementary methimazole. Metabolic rate and body temperature was significantly increased in food-restricted hamsters following introduction of an intruder, which was not completely blocked by supplementary methimazole. Serum T3 and T4 levels and BAT COX activity were not significantly changed following aggression, and were significantly decreased by supplementary methimazole. These findings suggest that striped hamsters increase energy expenditure for territory aggression during food restriction, and consequently lead to excessive energy depletion. Territory aggression behavior may decrease the capacity to cope with food shortage, which may be independent of thyroid hormone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sha-Sha Liao
- College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Wei Liu
- College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Jing Cao
- College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Zhi-Jun Zhao
- College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, China.
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Late lactation in small mammals is a critically sensitive window of vulnerability to elevated ambient temperature. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:24352-24358. [PMID: 32929014 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2008974117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Predicted increases in global average temperature are physiologically trivial for most endotherms. However, heat waves will also increase in both frequency and severity, and these will be physiologically more important. Lactating small mammals are hypothesized to be limited by heat dissipation capacity, suggesting high temperatures may adversely impact lactation performance. We measured reproductive performance of mice and striped hamsters (Cricetulus barabensis), including milk energy output (MEO), at temperatures between 21 and 36 °C. In both species, there was a decline in MEO between 21 and 33 °C. In mice, milk production at 33 °C was only 18% of that at 21 °C. This led to reductions in pup growth by 20% but limited pup mortality (0.8%), because of a threefold increase in growth efficiency. In contrast, in hamsters, MEO at 33 °C was reduced to 78.1% of that at 21 °C, yet this led to significant pup mortality (possibly infanticide) and reduced pup growth by 12.7%. Hamster females were more able to sustain milk production as ambient temperature increased, but they and their pups were less capable of adjusting to the lower supply. In both species, exposure to 36 °C resulted in rapid catastrophic lactation failure and maternal mortality. Upper lethal temperature was lowered by 3 to 6 °C in late lactation, making it a critically sensitive window to high ambient temperatures. Our data suggest future heat wave events will impact breeding success of small rodents, but this is based on animals with a long history in captivity. More work should be performed on wild rodents to confirm these impacts.
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Wen J, Chi QS, Wang DH, Zhao ZJ. The responses of metabolic rate and neuropeptides to food deprivation in striped hamsters (Cricetulus barabensis) with different basal metabolic rate. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY PART 2020; 333:483-492. [PMID: 32314557 DOI: 10.1002/jez.2362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2019] [Revised: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
High basal metabolic rate (BMR) is related to a powerful metabolic engine even under food shortage, which can lead to high levels of daily energy expenditure and requires more energy for maintenance in small mammals. To test the hypothesis that animals with different BMR levels respond differently to food shortage, we compared the changes in metabolism, morphology, and gene expression in response to food deprivation (FD) in male-striped hamsters (Cricetulus barabensis) with low (L)- or high (H)-BMR levels. After 36 hr of FD, energy expenditure, metabolic rate (MR), mass of body composition, and leptin and agouti-related peptide gene expressions in the white adipose tissues and the hypothalamus, respectively, decreased significantly in hamsters. The energy expenditure of H-BMR hamsters was reduced more than that of L-BMR hamsters after 36 hr of FD. Furthermore, MR was significantly reduced by FD, and that of the H-BMR group decreased more than that of the L-BMR group during the daytime. Therefore, our data suggest that striped hamsters with different BMR display different responses to variations in food availability. During FD, MR in H-BMR hamsters was more flexible than that in L-BMR animals and L-BMR hamsters could not reduce their MR any lower.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Wen
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Biotic Interactions, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qing-Sheng Chi
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - De-Hua Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Biotic Interactions, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhi-Jun Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou, China
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Mathot KJ, Dingemanse NJ, Nakagawa S. The covariance between metabolic rate and behaviour varies across behaviours and thermal types: meta‐analytic insights. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2018; 94:1056-1074. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2018] [Revised: 11/26/2018] [Accepted: 11/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kimberley J. Mathot
- Canada Research Chair in Integrative Ecology, Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of Alberta CW405 Biological Sciences Building, T6G 2E9 Edmonton Alberta Canada
- NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea ResearchDepartment of Coastal Systems and Utrecht University 1790 AB, den Burg, Texel The Netherlands
| | - Niels J. Dingemanse
- Behavioural Ecology, Department Biology IILudwig‐Maximilians University of Munich Grosshadener Strasse 2, DE‐82152, Planegg‐Martinsried, Munich Germany
| | - Shinichi Nakagawa
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental SciencesUniversity of New South Wales Sydney New South Wales 2052 Australia
- Diabetes and Metabolism Division, Garvan Institute of Medical Research 384 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney New South Wales 2010 Australia
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