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Love AC, Tabb V, Youssef NH, Wilder SM, DuRant SE. Effect of dietary macronutrients and immune challenge on gut microbiota, physiology and feeding behaviour in zebra finches. Mol Ecol 2024; 33:e17428. [PMID: 38837812 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024]
Abstract
Macronutrients play a vital role in host immunity and can influence host-pathogen dynamics, potentially through dietary effects on gut microbiota. To increase our understanding of how dietary macronutrients affect physiology and gut microbiota and investigate whether feeding behaviour is influenced by an immune threat, we conducted two experiments. First, we determined whether zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) exhibit shifts in physiology and gut microbiota when fed diets differing in macronutrient ratios. We found the type and amount of diet consumed affected gut microbiota alpha diversity, where microbial richness and Shannon diversity increased with caloric intake in birds fed a high-fat diet and decreased with caloric intake in birds fed a high protein diet. Diet macronutrient content did not affect physiological metrics, but lower caloric intake was associated with higher complement activity. In our second experiment, we simulated an infection in birds using the bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and quantified feeding behaviour in immune challenged and control individuals, as well as birds housed near either a control pair (no immune threat), or birds housed near a pair given an immune challenge with LPS (social cue of heightened infection risk). We also examined whether social cues of infection alter physiological responses relevant to responding to an immune threat, an effect that could be mediated through shifts in feeding behaviour. LPS induced a reduction in caloric intake driven by a decrease in protein, but not fat consumption. No evidence was found for socially induced shifts in feeding behaviour, physiology or gut microbiota. Our findings carry implications for host health, as sickness-induced anorexia and diet-induced shifts in the microbiome could shape host-pathogen interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashley C Love
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Victoria Tabb
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Noha H Youssef
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Shawn M Wilder
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Sarah E DuRant
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
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2
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Blubaugh CK, Jones CR, Josefson C, Scoles GA, Snyder WE, Owen JP. Omnivore diet composition alters parasite resistance and host condition. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:2175-2188. [PMID: 37732627 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023]
Abstract
Diet composition modulates animals' ability to resist parasites and recover from stress. Broader diet breadths enable omnivores to mount dynamic responses to parasite attack, but little is known about how plant/prey mixing might influence responses to infection. Using omnivorous deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) as a model, we examine how varying plant and prey concentrations in blended diets influence resistance and body condition following infestation by Rocky Mountain wood ticks (Dermacentor andersoni). In two repeated experiments, deer mice fed for 4 weeks on controlled diets that varied in proportions of seeds and insects were then challenged with 50 tick larvae in two sequential infestations. The numbers of ticks successfully feeding on mice declined by 25% and 66% after the first infestation (in the first and second experiments, respectively), reflecting a pattern of acquired resistance, and resistance was strongest when plant/prey ratios were more equally balanced in mouse diets, relative to seed-dominated diets. Diet also dramatically impacted the capacity of mice to cope with tick infestations. Mice fed insect-rich diets lost 15% of their body weight when parasitized by ticks, while mice fed seed-rich diets lost no weight at all. While mounting/maintaining an immune response may be energetically demanding, mice may compensate for parasitism with fat and carbohydrate-rich diets. Altogether, these results suggest that a diverse nutritional landscape may be key in enabling omnivores' resistance and resilience to infection and immune stressors in their environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmen K Blubaugh
- Department of Crop Sciences, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Cami R Jones
- Department of Entomology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | - Chloe Josefson
- Department of Animal, Veterinary and Food Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, USA
| | - Glen A Scoles
- Invasive Insect Biocontrol & Behavior Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, Maryland, USA
| | - William E Snyder
- Department of Crop Sciences, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Jeb P Owen
- Department of Entomology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
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3
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Herschberger JE, Rainey ST, Hernández F, Stewart KG, Montalvo A, Howard LK. EXPLORING A PLANT-DIVERSITY HYPOTHESIS TO EXPLAIN HELMINTH PREVALENCE IN NORTHERN BOBWHITE (COLINUS VIRGINIANUS) IN TEXAS, USA. J Wildl Dis 2023; 59:651-661. [PMID: 37846916 DOI: 10.7589/jwd-d-22-00124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023]
Abstract
Helminths, in particular eyeworms (Oxyspirura petrowi) and cecal worms (Aulonocephalus pennula), may be a factor influencing northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) populations in Texas. Previous research has shown a discrepancy in helminth infections between the Rolling Plains and Rio Grande Plains of Texas, US, potentially caused by differences in intermediate host distribution and abundance. We explored an alternative hypothesis centered on plant diversity, given that many plants possess phytochemicals with anthelmintic properties. We predicted that plant diversity would be greater and bobwhite diet more diverse in the Rio Grande Plains than the Rolling Plains, which in turn would potentially expose bobwhites to more plants with anthelmintic properties and therefore result in lower parasite prevalence and intensity. We conducted a literature review of plant diversity, anthelmintic plants, and bobwhite diet in Texas to explore this hypothesis. We also quantified the relationship between helminth prevalence in bobwhites and latitude. We documented trends for higher plant species richness, greater number of anthelmintic plants, and more diverse bobwhite diet in the Rio Grande Plains compared to the Rolling Plains. In addition, we documented a trend for increasing helminth prevalence with latitude for eyeworms but not cecal worms. Our study provides circumstantial evidence supporting the plant-diversity hypothesis and warrants experimental testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- John E Herschberger
- Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Howe Agricultural Building, Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
| | - Shaelyn T Rainey
- Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Howe Agricultural Building, Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
| | - Fidel Hernández
- Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Howe Agricultural Building, Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
| | - Kristyn G Stewart
- Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Howe Agricultural Building, Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
| | - Andrea Montalvo
- East Foundation, 310 East Galbraith Street, Hebbronville, Texas 78361, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
| | - Lindsey K Howard
- Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Howe Agricultural Building, Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this study
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4
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Casey F, Old JM, Stannard HJ. Assessment of the diet of the critically endangered northern hairy-nosed wombat ( Lasiorhinus krefftii) using DNA metabarcoding. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10469. [PMID: 37693933 PMCID: PMC10485309 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10469] [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: 05/21/2023] [Revised: 08/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Invasive buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris) is considered a threat to the critically endangered northern hairy-nosed wombat (Lasiorhinus krefftii; NHW). Buffel grass outcompetes native grasses, reducing availability of native food items for NHW, and causes more intense fires due to the large volumes of dead matter it produces. Previous studies suggested buffel grass was increasing in the diet; however, the diet of the NHW has not been reassessed for over two decades and was limited to Epping Forest National Park, with the population at Richard Underwood Nature Refuge having never been assessed. The recently released 2022 Recovery Action Plan for the species outlined objectives to assist its conservation and recommended the impact of buffel grass on the species' diet be investigated. This study aimed to determine: (1) which plant species are being consumed by the NHW; (2) the differences in the diet between sites; (3) differences between seasons; and (4) the abundance of buffel grass in the diet. The diet was assessed using DNA metabarcoding of scat samples collected from both sites from winter 2020 to spring 2021. Site and season significantly affected the diet of the NHW. Buffel grass dominated the diet and has increased in the diet since past assessments. The findings of this study will support population and habitat management of the critically endangered NHW. Enhanced knowledge of dietary items consumed at both sites will also assist efforts to locate additional sites suitable for translocation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona Casey
- School of ScienceWestern Sydney UniversityHawkesburyNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Julie M. Old
- School of ScienceWestern Sydney UniversityHawkesburyNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Hayley Jade Stannard
- School of Agricultural, Environmental and Veterinary SciencesCharles Sturt UniversityWagga WaggaNew South WalesAustralia
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5
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Ivers NA, Jha S. Biogeography, climate, and land use create a mosaic of parasite risk in native bumble bees. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 868:161545. [PMID: 36649773 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Revised: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Host-parasite interactions are crucial to the regulation of host population growth, as they often impact both long-term population stability and ecological functioning. Animal hosts navigate a number of environmental conditions, including local climate, anthropogenic land use, and varying degrees of spatial isolation, all of which can mediate parasitism exposure. Despite this, we know little about the potential for these environmental conditions to impact pathogen prevalence at biogeographic scales, especially for key ecosystem service-providing animals. Bees are essential pollination providers that may be particularly sensitive to biogeography, climate, and land-use as these factors are known to limit bee dispersal and contribute to underlying population genetic variation, which may also impact host-parasite interactions. Importantly, many native bumble bee species have recently shown geographic range contractions, reduced genetic diversity, and increased parasitism rates, highlighting the potential importance of interacting and synergistic stressors. In this study, we incorporate spatially explicit environmental, biogeographic, and land-use data in combination with genetically derived host population data to conduct a large-scale epidemiological assessment of the drivers of pathogen prevalence across >1000 km for a keystone western US pollinator, the bumble bee Bombus vosnesenskii. We found high rates of infection from Crithidia bombi and C. expoekii, which show strong spatial autocorrelation and which were more prevalent in northern latitudes. We also show that land use barriers best explained differences in parasite prevalence and parasite community composition, while precipitation, elevation, and B. vosnesenskii nesting density were important drivers of parasite prevalence. Overall, our results demonstrate that human land use can impact critical host-parasite interactions for native bees at massive spatial scales. Further, our work indicates that disease-related survey and conservation measures should take into account the independent and interacting influences of climate, biogeography, land use, and local population dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas A Ivers
- University of Texas at Austin, Dept. Integrative Biology, United States of America.
| | - Shalene Jha
- University of Texas at Austin, Dept. Integrative Biology, United States of America
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6
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Experimental evidence of parasite-induced behavioural alterations modulated by food availability in wild capuchin monkeys. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3083. [PMID: 36813841 PMCID: PMC9947137 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30262-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 02/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
In disease dynamics, host behaviour can both determine the quantity of parasites a host is exposed to, and be a consequence of infection. Observational and experimental studies in non-human primates have consistently found that parasitic infections result in less movement and reduced foraging, which was interpreted as an adaptive response of the host to counter infection. Variation in host nutritional condition may add complexity to the infection-behaviour relationship, and its influence may shed light on its significance. To experimentally evaluate how host activity and social relationships are affected by the interaction of parasitism and nutrition, during two years we manipulated food availability by provisioning bananas, and helminth infections by applying antiparasitic drugs, in two groups of wild black capuchin monkeys (Sapajus nigritus) in Iguazú National Park, Argentina. We collected faecal samples to determine the intensity of helminthic infections, as well as data on behaviour and social proximity. Individuals with unmanipulated helminth burdens foraged less than dewormed individuals only when food provisioning was low. Resting time was increased when capuchins were highly provisioned, but it did not vary according to the antiparasitic treatment. Proximity associations to other group members were not affected by the antiparasitic treatment. This is the first experimental evidence of a modulating effect of food availability on the influence of helminth infection on activity in wild primates. The findings are more consistent with an impact on host behaviour due to the debilitating effect caused by parasites than with an adaptive response to help fight infections.
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7
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Gibson AK, Amoroso CR. Evolution and Ecology of Parasite Avoidance. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY, EVOLUTION, AND SYSTEMATICS 2022; 53:47-67. [PMID: 36479162 PMCID: PMC9724790 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-102220-020636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Parasite avoidance is a host defense that reduces the contact rate with parasites. We investigate avoidance as a primary driver of variation among individuals in the risk of parasitism and the evolution of host-parasite interactions. To bridge mechanistic and taxonomic divides, we define and categorize avoidance by its function and position in the sequence of host defenses. We also examine the role of avoidance in limiting epidemics and evaluate evidence for the processes that drive its evolution. Throughout, we highlight important directions to advance our conceptual and theoretical understanding of the role of avoidance in host-parasite interactions. We emphasize the need to test assumptions and quantify the effect of avoidance independent of other defenses. Importantly, many open questions may be most tractable in host systems that have not been the focus of traditional behavioral avoidance research, such as plants and invertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda K Gibson
- Department of Biology; University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903
| | - Caroline R Amoroso
- Department of Biology; University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903
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8
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A systematic review and meta-analysis of impact of strongyle parasitism on growth rates in young cattle. Vet Parasitol 2022; 309:109760. [DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2022.109760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2022] [Revised: 06/17/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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9
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Bolnick DI, Resetarits EJ, Ballare K, Stuart YE, Stutz WE. Scale-dependent effects of host patch traits on species composition in a stickleback parasite metacommunity. Ecology 2020; 101:e03181. [PMID: 32880940 PMCID: PMC7757261 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2020] [Revised: 06/08/2020] [Accepted: 06/28/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
A core goal of ecology is to understand the abiotic and biotic variables that regulate species distributions and community composition. A major obstacle is that the rules governing species distributions can change with spatial scale. Here, we illustrate this point using data from a spatially nested metacommunity of parasites infecting a metapopulation of threespine stickleback fish from 34 lakes on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Like most parasite metacommunities, the composition of stickleback parasites differs among host individuals within each host population, and differs between host populations. The distribution of each parasite taxon depends, to varying degrees, on individual host traits (e.g., mass, diet) and on host-population characteristics (e.g., lake size, mean host mass, mean diet). However, in most cases in this data set, a given parasite was regulated by different factors at the host-individual and host-population scales, leading to scale-dependent patterns of parasite-species co-occurrence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel I. Bolnick
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712USA
- Present address:
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology & Institute of System GenomicsUniversity of ConnecticutStorrsConnecticut06269USA
| | - Emlyn J. Resetarits
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712USA
- Present address:
Center for the Ecology of Infectious DiseaseOdum School of EcologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | - Kimberly Ballare
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712USA
- Present address:
Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of California Santa CruzSanta CruzCalifornia95064USA
| | - Yoel E. Stuart
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712USA
- Present address:
Department of BiologyLoyola UniversityChicagoIllinois60660USA
| | - William E. Stutz
- Department of Integrative BiologyUniversity of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712USA
- Office of Institutional ResearchWestern Michigan UniversityKalamazooMichigan49008‐5253USA
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10
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Distel RA, Arroquy JI, Lagrange S, Villalba JJ. Designing Diverse Agricultural Pastures for Improving Ruminant Production Systems. FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2020.596869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
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11
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Gold S, Regan CE, McLoughlin PD, Gilleard JS, Wilson AJ, Poissant J. Quantitative genetics of gastrointestinal strongyle burden and associated body condition in feral horses. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR PARASITOLOGY-PARASITES AND WILDLIFE 2019; 9:104-111. [PMID: 31011533 PMCID: PMC6462499 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2019.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2018] [Revised: 02/16/2019] [Accepted: 03/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Variability in host resistance or tolerance to parasites is nearly ubiquitous, and is of key significance in understanding the evolutionary processes shaping host-parasite interactions. While ample research has been conducted on the genetics of parasite burden in livestock, relatively little has been done in free-living populations. Here, we investigate the sources of (co)variation in strongyle nematode faecal egg count (FEC) and body condition in Sable Island horses, a feral population in which parasite burden has previously been shown to negatively correlate with body condition. We used the quantitative genetic "animal model" to understand the sources of (co)variation in these traits, and tested for impacts of an important spatial gradient in habitat quality on the parameter estimates. Although FEC is significantly heritable (h 2 = 0.43 ± 0.11), there was no evidence for significant additive genetic variation in body condition (h 2 = 0.04 ± 0.07), and therefore there was also no significant genetic covariance between the two traits. The negative phenotypic covariance between these traits therefore does not derive principally from additive genetic effects. We also found that both FEC and body condition increase from east to west across the island, which indicates that the longitudinal environmental gradient is not responsible for the negative phenotypic association observed between these traits. There was also little evidence to suggest that quantitative genetic parameters were biased when an individual's location along the island's environmental gradient was not incorporated into the analysis. This research provides new and important insights into the genetic basis and adaptive potential of parasite resistance in free-living animals, and highlights the importance of environmental heterogeneity in modulating host-parasite interactions in wild vertebrate systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susannah Gold
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Charlotte E Regan
- Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, 112 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E2, Canada
| | - Philip D McLoughlin
- Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, 112 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E2, Canada
| | - John S Gilleard
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, University of Calgary, 3280 Hospital Drive, Calgary, AB, T2N 4Z6, Canada
| | - Alastair J Wilson
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Jocelyn Poissant
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, University of Calgary, 3280 Hospital Drive, Calgary, AB, T2N 4Z6, Canada
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12
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Ye M, Veyrat N, Xu H, Hu L, Turlings TCJ, Erb M. An herbivore-induced plant volatile reduces parasitoid attraction by changing the smell of caterpillars. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2018; 4:eaar4767. [PMID: 29774237 PMCID: PMC5955622 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aar4767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2017] [Accepted: 04/03/2018] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) can mediate tritrophic interactions by attracting natural enemies of insect herbivores such as predators and parasitoids. Whether HIPVs can also mediate tritrophic interactions by influencing the attractiveness of the herbivores themselves remains unknown. We explored this question by studying the role of indole, a common HIPV in the plant kingdom. We found that herbivory-induced indole increases the recruitment of the solitary endoparasitoid Microplitis rufiventris to maize plants that are induced by Spodoptera littoralis caterpillars. Surprisingly, however, indole reduces parasitoid recruitment when the caterpillars themselves are present on the plants. Further experiments revealed that indole exposure renders S. littoralis caterpillars unattractive to M. rufiventris, leading to an overall reduction in attractiveness of plant-herbivore complexes. Furthermore, indole increases S. littoralis resistance and decreases M. rufiventris parasitization success. S. littoralis caterpillars are repelled by indole in the absence of M. rufiventris but specifically stop avoiding the volatile in the presence of the parasitoid. Our study shows how an HIPV can undermine tritrophic interactions by reducing the suitability and attractiveness of caterpillars to parasitoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Ye
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Altenbergrain 21, 3013 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Nathalie Veyrat
- Laboratory for Fundamental and Advanced Research in Chemical Ecology, University of Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2009 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Hao Xu
- Laboratory for Fundamental and Advanced Research in Chemical Ecology, University of Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2009 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Lingfei Hu
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Altenbergrain 21, 3013 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Ted C. J. Turlings
- Laboratory for Fundamental and Advanced Research in Chemical Ecology, University of Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11, 2009 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
- Corresponding author. (M.E.); (T.C.J.T.)
| | - Matthias Erb
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Altenbergrain 21, 3013 Bern, Switzerland
- Corresponding author. (M.E.); (T.C.J.T.)
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13
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Distel RA, Villalba JJ. Use of Unpalatable Forages by Ruminants: The Influence of Experience with the Biophysical and Social Environment. Animals (Basel) 2018; 8:ani8040056. [PMID: 29662017 PMCID: PMC5946140 DOI: 10.3390/ani8040056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2018] [Revised: 04/11/2018] [Accepted: 04/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Unpalatable forage resources (low nutrient density, potentially toxic metabolites) are widespread and represent a challenge for ruminant nutrition, health, and welfare. Our objective was to synthesize the role of biophysical and social experience on the use of unpalatable forages by ruminants, and highlight derived behavioural solutions for the well-being of soils, plants, and animals. Environmental experiences early in life modulate gene expression and promote learning, which alters morpho-physiological and psychological mechanisms that modify behavioural responses and change food and habitat selection. In this process, ruminants can become better adapted to the habitat where they are reared. Moreover, experiential learning provides flexibility in diet selection, which is critical for changing foraging environments. Learned associations between unpalatable and palatable foods, if ingested in appropriate amounts, sequence, and close temporal association, induce the development of preference for the former type of food. In this way, a more uniform use of resources can be achieved from the landscape level down to the individual plant, with the associated benefits to ecosystem integrity and stability. Ruminants can also learn the medicinal benefits of ingesting foods with toxins (e.g., condensed tannins and saponins with antiparasitic properties). This knowledge on behavioural processes can be translated into behavioural applications that provide low-cost solutions to many challenges that producers face in managing sustainable livestock production systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto A Distel
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS), Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS)-CONICET, La carrindanga km 7, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina.
| | - Juan J Villalba
- Department of Wildland Resources, Quinney College of Natural Resources, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5230, USA.
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14
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Fischer ML, Palodeto MFT, Santos ECD. [The use of animal-assisted therapy: a bioethical question]. HISTORIA, CIENCIAS, SAUDE--MANGUINHOS 2018; 25:217-243. [PMID: 29694525 DOI: 10.1590/s0104-59702018000100013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2016] [Accepted: 03/08/2017] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
This paper addresses ethical questions concerning animal-assisted therapy (zootherapy). While it has been documented for centuries in several cultures and is resistant to urban and technological developments, it combines multiple moral and vulnerable agents, constituting a dilemma whose fair and consensual solution calls for new perspectives, like environmental bioethics. Through analyses of scientific texts, the arguments and values intrinsic to decisions about how and when to use animals as medical resources are systematized. Using bioethics as a method, reflections are offered about the potential solutions dependent on the multidimensional communication between the players from the three pillars of sustainability - environment, society, and economy - involved in this global ethical question, focusing on conservation and sustainable production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Luciane Fischer
- Escola de Ciências da Vida, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná, Curitiba, PR, Brasil,
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15
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Budischak SA, Hansen CB, Caudron Q, Garnier R, Kartzinel TR, Pelczer I, Cressler CE, van Leeuwen A, Graham AL. Feeding Immunity: Physiological and Behavioral Responses to Infection and Resource Limitation. Front Immunol 2018; 8:1914. [PMID: 29358937 PMCID: PMC5766659 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.01914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2017] [Accepted: 12/14/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Resources are a core currency of species interactions and ecology in general (e.g., think of food webs or competition). Within parasite-infected hosts, resources are divided among the competing demands of host immunity and growth as well as parasite reproduction and growth. Effects of resources on immune responses are increasingly understood at the cellular level (e.g., metabolic predictors of effector function), but there has been limited consideration of how these effects scale up to affect individual energetic regimes (e.g., allocation trade-offs), susceptibility to infection, and feeding behavior (e.g., responses to local resource quality and quantity). We experimentally rewilded laboratory mice (strain C57BL/6) in semi-natural enclosures to investigate the effects of dietary protein and gastrointestinal nematode (Trichuris muris) infection on individual-level immunity, activity, and behavior. The scale and realism of this field experiment, as well as the multiple physiological assays developed for laboratory mice, enabled us to detect costs, trade-offs, and potential compensatory mechanisms that mice employ to battle infection under different resource conditions. We found that mice on a low-protein diet spent more time feeding, which led to higher body fat stores (i.e., concentration of a satiety hormone, leptin) and altered metabolite profiles, but which did not fully compensate for the effects of poor nutrition on albumin or immune defenses. Specifically, immune defenses measured as interleukin 13 (IL13) (a primary cytokine coordinating defense against T. muris) and as T. muris-specific IgG1 titers were lower in mice on the low-protein diet. However, these reduced defenses did not result in higher worm counts in mice with poorer diets. The lab mice, living outside for the first time in thousands of generations, also consumed at least 26 wild plant species occurring in the enclosures, and DNA metabarcoding revealed that the consumption of different wild foods may be associated with differences in leptin concentrations. When individual foraging behavior was accounted for, worm infection significantly reduced rates of host weight gain. Housing laboratory mice in outdoor enclosures provided new insights into the resource costs of immune defense to helminth infection and how hosts modify their behavior to compensate for those costs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah A. Budischak
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
| | - Christina B. Hansen
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
| | - Quentin Caudron
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
| | - Romain Garnier
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Tyler R. Kartzinel
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States
| | - István Pelczer
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
| | - Clayton E. Cressler
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, United States
| | - Anieke van Leeuwen
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
- NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Coastal Systems, and Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Andrea L. Graham
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
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16
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Orsolini L, St John-Smith P, McQueen D, Papanti D, Corkery J, Schifano F. Evolutionary Considerations on the Emerging Subculture of the E-psychonauts and the Novel Psychoactive Substances: A Comeback to the Shamanism? Curr Neuropharmacol 2017; 15:731-737. [PMID: 27834144 PMCID: PMC5771049 DOI: 10.2174/1570159x15666161111114838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2016] [Revised: 05/24/2016] [Accepted: 10/03/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Evolutionary research on drug abuse has hitherto been restricted to proximate studies, considering aetiology, mechanism, and ontogeny. However, in order to explain the recent emergency of a new behavioral pattern (e.g. 'the e-psychonaut style') of novel psychoactive substances' (NPS) intake, a complementary evolutionary model may be needed. OBJECTIVE A range of evolutionary interpretations on the 'psychonaut style' and the recent emergency of NPS were here considered. METHOD The PubMed database was searched in order to elicit evolutionary theory-based documents commenting on NPS/NPS users/e-psychonauts. RESULTS The traditional 'shamanic style' use of entheogens/plant-derived compounds may present with a range of similarities with the 'e-psychonauts' use of mostly of hallucinogen/psychedelic NPS. These users consider themselves as 'new/technological' shamans. CONCLUSION Indeed, a range of evolutionary mechanisms, such as: optimal foraging, costly signaling, and reproduction at the expense of health may all cooperate to explain the recent spread and diffusion of the NPS market, and this may represent a reason of concern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Orsolini
- Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, College Lane Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9AB
- Villa San Giuseppe Hospital, Hermanas Hospitalarias, Ascoli Piceno, Italy
- Polyedra Research, Polyedra, Teramo, Italy
| | - Paul St John-Smith
- Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, Civic Offices, Elstree Way, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, WD6 1WA
| | - Daniel McQueen
- Child and Family Department, The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, Child and Family Department – 120 Belsize Lane, London, NW3 5BA & Eating Disorder Unit, Cygnet Hospital Ealing, 22 Corfton Road, Ealing, W5 2HT, UK
| | - Duccio Papanti
- Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, College Lane Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9AB
| | - John Corkery
- Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, College Lane Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9AB
| | - Fabrizio Schifano
- Psychopharmacology, Drug Misuse and Novel Psychoactive Substances Research Unit, School of Life and Medical Sciences, College Lane Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9AB
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17
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Amoroso CR, Frink AG, Nunn CL. Water choice as a counterstrategy to faecally transmitted disease: an experimental study in captive lemurs. BEHAVIOUR 2017. [DOI: 10.1163/1568539x-00003466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
Many parasites and pathogens are transmitted via water, including through faecal contamination of water sources. Yet water is essential for survival, and some species gain nutritional and other benefits from coprophagy. We investigated how primates balance the risks of faecal pathogen transmission with potential benefits of faeces ingestion in their selection of water sources by conducting behavioural experiments with five species of lemurs (Family Lemuridae) in captivity. Subjects were given a choice between clean water and water ‘contaminated’ with disinfected faecal material, which contained cues associated with faecally transmitted parasites, but minimal risk. We found that lemurs exhibited strong preferences for the clean water. This pattern was supported even at low levels of faecal contamination and in species adapted to water-limited habitats, for which choosiness about water quality could present a dehydration risk. Our results strongly support the hypothesis that avoiding faecal contamination is important in water selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline R. Amoroso
- aDepartment of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, 130 Science Drive, Room 108, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Alexa G. Frink
- aDepartment of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, 130 Science Drive, Room 108, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- bSchool of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 3800 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Charles L. Nunn
- aDepartment of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, 130 Science Drive, Room 108, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- cDuke Global Health Institute, Duke University, 310 Trent Drive, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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18
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Sairkar PK, Sharma A, Shukla NP. Estimation of Guggulsterone E and Z in the Guggul-based Commercial Formulations Using High-performance Thin-layer Chromatography. J Pharm Bioallied Sci 2017; 9:1-7. [PMID: 28584486 PMCID: PMC5450464 DOI: 10.4103/0975-7406.206225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Guggulsterone (GS) is a plant steroid and bioactive compound present in gum Guggul of Commiphora wightii. An Indian herbal medicine system “Ayurveda” has a long history of use of gum Guggul and plant extract of C. wightii as medicine for the treatment of various illnesses. Complex nature, low availability, and inconsistency of phytoconstituents make its analysis of difficult tasks. Aims: In this work, six different Guggul-based herbal formulations were examined for estimation of GS and their isomers (E and Z) through high-performance thin-layer chromatography technique. Materials and Methods: For that various concentrations of standard E-GS and Z-GS (50 ng–250 ng/spot) with samples (20 μg/spot) were applied on silica gel coated aluminum plate and developed with the mobile phase of toluene: ethyl acetate: formic acid: methanol (6:2:1:0.5). The scanning was performed at 254 nm wavelength and the absorbance (scan) spectrum of E-GS and Z-GS peak was generated at 200 nm–400 nm wavelength range. Results and Conclusions: Rf value and scan spectrum pattern of the samples reveal that they contain either one form of GS (E-GS, Z-GS) or both. The quantity of E-GS and Z-GS within the samples was ranged from 0.230 ± 0.0040–0.926 ± 0.0168% to 0.537 ± 0.0026–0.723 ± 0.0177%, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pramod Kumar Sairkar
- Centre of Excellence in Biotechnology, M. P. Council of Science and Technology, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
| | - Anjana Sharma
- Department of Postgraduate Studies and Research in Biological Science, Bacteriology Laboratory, Rani Durgavati University, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India
| | - N P Shukla
- Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board, Paryavaran Parisar, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
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19
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Mutual dilution of infection by an introduced parasite in native and invasive stream fishes across Hawaii. Parasitology 2016; 143:1605-14. [PMID: 27585480 DOI: 10.1017/s0031182016001001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The presence of introduced hosts can increase or decrease infections of co-introduced parasites in native species of conservation concern. In this study, we compared parasite abundance, intensity, and prevalence between native Awaous stamineus and introduced poeciliid fishes by a co-introduced nematode parasite (Camallanus cotti) in 42 watersheds across the Hawaiian Islands. We found that parasite abundance, intensity and prevalence were greater in native than introduced hosts. Parasite abundance, intensity and prevalence within A. stamineus varied between years, which largely reflected a transient spike in infection in three remote watersheds on Molokai. At each site we measured host factors (length, density of native host, density of introduced host) and environmental factors (per cent agricultural and urban land use, water chemistry, watershed area and precipitation) hypothesized to influence C. cotti abundance, intensity and prevalence. Factors associated with parasitism differed between native and introduced hosts. Notably, parasitism of native hosts was higher in streams with lower water quality, whereas parasitism of introduced hosts was lower in streams with lower water quality. We also found that parasite burdens were lower in both native and introduced hosts when coincident. Evidence of a mutual dilution effect indicates that introduced hosts can ameliorate parasitism of native fishes by co-introduced parasites, which raises questions about the value of remediation actions, such as the removal of introduced hosts, in stemming the rise of infectious disease in species of conservation concern.
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20
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Hoste H, Torres-Acosta JFJ, Quijada J, Chan-Perez I, Dakheel MM, Kommuru DS, Mueller-Harvey I, Terrill TH. Interactions Between Nutrition and Infections With Haemonchus contortus and Related Gastrointestinal Nematodes in Small Ruminants. ADVANCES IN PARASITOLOGY 2016; 93:239-351. [PMID: 27238007 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apar.2016.02.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Interactions between host nutrition and feeding behaviour are central to understanding the pathophysiological consequences of infections of the digestive tract with parasitic nematodes. The manipulation of host nutrition provides useful options to control gastrointestinal nematodes as a component of an integrated strategy. Focussed mainly on the Haemonchus contortus infection model in small ruminants, this chapter (1) illustrates the relationship between quantitative (macro- and micro-nutrients) and qualitative (plant secondary metabolites) aspects of host nutrition and nematode infection, and (2) shows how basic studies aimed at addressing some generic questions can help to provide solutions, despite the considerable diversity of epidemiological situations and breeding systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Hoste
- INRA, UMR 1225 IHAP, Toulouse, France; Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | | | - J Quijada
- INRA, UMR 1225 IHAP, Toulouse, France; Université de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - I Chan-Perez
- Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Merida, Yucatan, Mexico
| | - M M Dakheel
- University of Reading, Reading, United Kingdom
| | - D S Kommuru
- Fort Valley State University, Fort Valley, GA, United States
| | | | - T H Terrill
- Fort Valley State University, Fort Valley, GA, United States
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21
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Mandel R, Whay HR, Klement E, Nicol CJ. Invited review: Environmental enrichment of dairy cows and calves in indoor housing. J Dairy Sci 2016; 99:1695-1715. [PMID: 26774729 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2015-9875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2015] [Accepted: 11/29/2015] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
In recent years, an increasing number of farmers are choosing to keep their cows indoors throughout the year. Indoor housing of cows allows farmers to provide high-yielding individuals with a nutritionally balanced diet fit for their needs, and it has important welfare benefits for both cows and their calves, such as protection from predators, parasites, and exposure to extreme weather conditions. However, it also confronts cows and calves with a wide range of environmental challenges. These include abiotic environmental sources of stress (e.g., exposure to loud and aversive sound) and confinement-specific stressors (e.g., restricted movement and maintenance in abnormal social groups). Cows and calves that live indoors are also faced with the challenge of occupying long periods with a limited range of possible behavioral patterns. Environmental enrichment can improve biological functioning (measured as increased lifetime reproductive success, increased inclusive fitness, or a correlate of these such as improved health), help animals to cope with stressors in their surroundings, reduce frustration, increase the fulfillment of behavioral needs, and promote more positive affective states. Here, we review recent findings on the effect of social, occupational, physical, sensory, and nutritional enrichment on dairy cows and calves, and we assess the appropriateness and practicality of implementing different enrichment practices on commercial dairy farms. Some of the enrichment methods reviewed here may also be applied to those more extensive cattle-raising systems, where similar challenges occur.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Mandel
- Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
| | - H R Whay
- Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, Langford House, Langford, University of Bristol, Bristol BS18 7DU, United Kingdom
| | - E Klement
- Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - C J Nicol
- Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, Langford House, Langford, University of Bristol, Bristol BS18 7DU, United Kingdom
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22
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Cripps JK, Martin JK, Coulson G. Anthelmintic Treatment Does Not Change Foraging Strategies of Female Eastern Grey Kangaroos, Macropus giganteus. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0147384. [PMID: 26784582 PMCID: PMC4718527 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0147384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2015] [Accepted: 01/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Large mammalian herbivores are commonly infected with gastrointestinal helminths. Heavily parasitised hosts are likely to have increased nutritional requirements and would be predicted to increase their food intake to compensate for costs of being parasitised, but experimental tests of the impacts of these parasites on the foraging efficiency of hosts are lacking, particularly in free-ranging wildlife. We conducted a field experiment on a population of free-ranging eastern grey kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) to test this prediction, removing nematodes from one group of adult females using an anthelmintic treatment. We then carried out observations before and following treatment to assess the influence of parasites on foraging behaviour. Contrary to our predictions, the manipulation of parasite burdens did not result in changes in any of the key foraging variables we measured. Our results suggest that despite carrying large burdens of gastrointestinal parasites, the foraging strategy of female kangaroos is likely be driven by factors unrelated to parasitism, and that kangaroos in high nutritional environments may be able acquire sufficient nutrients to offset the costs of parasitism. We conclude that the drivers of forage intake likely differ between domesticated and free-ranging herbivores, and that free-ranging hosts are likely more resilient to parasitism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jemma K. Cripps
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Faculty of Veterinary Science, The University of Melbourne, Veterinary Clinical Centre, Werribee, Victoria, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | - Jennifer K. Martin
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Graeme Coulson
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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23
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Abstract
When we contract an infection, we typically feel sick and behave accordingly. Symptoms of sickness behavior (SB) include anorexia, hypersomnia, depression, and reduced social interactions. SB affects species spanning from arthropods to vertebrates, is triggered nonspecifically by viruses, bacteria, and parasites, and is orchestrated by a complex network of cytokines and neuroendocrine pathways; clearly, it has been naturally selected. Nonetheless, SB seems evolutionarily costly: it promotes starvation and predation and reduces reproductive opportunities. How could SB persist? Former explanations focused on individual fitness, invoking improved resistance to pathogens. Could prevention of disease transmission, propagating in populations through kin selection, also contribute to SB?
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Affiliation(s)
- Keren Shakhar
- Department of Psychology, College of Management Academic Studies, Rishon LeZion, Israel
| | - Guy Shakhar
- Department of Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
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24
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Bos N, Sundström L, Fuchs S, Freitak D. Ants medicate to fight disease. Evolution 2015; 69:2979-84. [PMID: 26283006 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2015] [Revised: 07/22/2015] [Accepted: 07/23/2015] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Parasites are ubiquitous, and the ability to defend against these is of paramount importance. One way to fight diseases is self-medication, which occurs when an organism consumes biologically active compounds to clear, inhibit, or alleviate disease symptoms. Here, we show for the first time that ants selectively consume harmful substances (reactive oxygen species, ROS) upon exposure to a fungal pathogen, yet avoid these in the absence of infection. This increased intake of ROS, while harmful to healthy ants, leads to higher survival of exposed ants. The fact that ingestion of this substance carries a fitness cost in the absence of pathogens rules out compensatory diet choice as the mechanism, and provides evidence that social insects medicate themselves against fungal infection, using a substance that carries a fitness cost to uninfected individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nick Bos
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Finland. .,Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Liselotte Sundström
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Finland.,Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Siiri Fuchs
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Finland.,Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Dalial Freitak
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Helsinki, Finland.,Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Finland.,Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
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25
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Seó HLS, Pinheiro Machado Filho LC, Honorato LA, da Silva BF, do Amarante AFT, Bricarello PA. The effect of gastrointestinal nematode infection level on grazing distance from dung. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0126340. [PMID: 26039729 PMCID: PMC4454583 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0126340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2014] [Accepted: 04/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Avoiding grazing near feces is an efficient strategy to prevent parasitic infection and contamination; therefore, in the evolution of herbivorous species, this behavior may have developed as a mechanism to protect the host against infection by gastrointestinal nematodes. The aim of this study was to assess whether grazing distance from dung is related to the level of parasitic infection in cattle. Based on Fecal Egg Count (FEC) means, 18 castrated male steers, aged 18 months, were divided into three groups: High (FEC ≥ 315); Medium (FEC = 130–160); and Low (FEC = 40–70). To analyze the response to a new natural infection by gastrointestinal nematodes and to standardize infection levels, all animals received anthelmintic treatment at twenty days prior to field observation. Three observers simultaneously collected data on grazing behavior for 2.5 hours/week for 12 weeks. Observers recorded the distance when grazing occurred at less than one meter from dung. Every two weeks, fecal samples were collected for FEC, as well as serum samples to measure immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels against larvae and adult antigens of the parasitic species Haemonchus placei. All groups grazed farther from the dung on days of greater insolation (r = 0.62; P = 0.03). Animals with high levels of parasitism grazed farther from the dung (P < 0.05) but had lower levels (P < 0.0001) of IgG serum levels compared to those with medium and low levels of infection. FEC values varied over the experiment, remaining below 200 for the low and medium group and reaching 1000 (P < 0.01) for the animals with the highest rates of parasitism. Our results indicate that cattle showing high levels of parasitism are more likely to avoid contaminated areas than animals with lower infection levels, and the immune system seems to be involved in such behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hizumi Lua Sarti Seó
- Laboratório de Etologia Aplicada e Bem-Estar Animal, Departamento de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
| | - Luiz Carlos Pinheiro Machado Filho
- Laboratório de Etologia Aplicada e Bem-Estar Animal, Departamento de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
- * E-mail:
| | - Luciana Aparecida Honorato
- Laboratório de Etologia Aplicada e Bem-Estar Animal, Departamento de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
| | | | | | - Patrizia Ana Bricarello
- Laboratório de Parasitologia Animal, Departamento de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
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26
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Pirvu L, Hlevca C, Nicu I, Bubueanu C. Comparative studies on analytical, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities of a series of vegetal extracts prepared from eight plant species growing in Romania. JPC-J PLANAR CHROMAT 2014. [DOI: 10.1556/jpc.27.2014.5.4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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27
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Choisy M, de Roode JC. The ecology and evolution of animal medication: genetically fixed response versus phenotypic plasticity. Am Nat 2014; 184 Suppl 1:S31-46. [PMID: 25061676 DOI: 10.1086/676928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Animal medication against parasites can occur either as a genetically fixed (constitutive) or phenotypically plastic (induced) behavior. Taking the tritrophic interaction between the monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus, its protozoan parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha, and its food plant Asclepias spp. as a test case, we develop a game-theory model to identify the epidemiological (parasite prevalence and virulence) and environmental (plant toxicity and abundance) conditions that predict the evolution of genetically fixed versus phenotypically plastic forms of medication. Our model shows that the relative benefits (the antiparasitic properties of medicinal food) and costs (side effects of medicine, the costs of searching for medicine, and the costs of plasticity itself) crucially determine whether medication is genetically fixed or phenotypically plastic. Our model suggests that animals evolve phenotypic plasticity when parasite risk (a combination of virulence and prevalence and thus a measure of the strength of parasite-mediated selection) is relatively low to moderately high and genetically fixed medication when parasite risk becomes very high. The latter occurs because at high parasite risk, the costs of plasticity are outweighed by the benefits of medication. Our model provides a simple and general framework to study the conditions that drive the evolution of alternative forms of animal medication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Choisy
- Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs: Ecologie, Génétique, Evolution et Contrôle (MIVEGEC; CNRS 5290, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement 224, Universities of Montpellier 1 and 2), Montpellier, France
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28
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Villalba JJ, Miller J, Ungar ED, Landau SY, Glendinning J. Ruminant self-medication against gastrointestinal nematodes: evidence, mechanism, and origins. Parasite 2014; 21:31. [PMID: 24971486 PMCID: PMC4073621 DOI: 10.1051/parasite/2014032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2014] [Accepted: 06/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Gastrointestinal helminths challenge ruminants in ways that reduce their fitness. In turn, ruminants have evolved physiological and behavioral adaptations that counteract this challenge. Ruminants display anorexia and avoidance behaviors, which tend to reduce the incidence of parasitism. In addition, ruminants appear to learn to self-medicate against gastrointestinal parasites by increasing consumption of plant secondary compounds with antiparasitic actions. This selective feeding improves health and fitness. Here, we review the evidence for self-medication in ruminants, propose a hypothesis to explain self-medicative behaviors (based on post-ingestive consequences), and discuss mechanisms (e.g., enhanced neophilia, social transmission) that may underlie the ontogeny and spread of self-medicative behaviors in social groups. A better understanding of the mechanisms that underlie and trigger self-medication in parasitized animals will help scientists devise innovative and more sustainable management strategies for improving ruminant health and well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan J. Villalba
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Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University 5230 Old Main Hill Logan Utah
84322-5230 USA
| | - James Miller
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Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University 70803
Baton Rouge USA
| | - Eugene D. Ungar
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Department of Natural Resources, Institute of Plant Sciences, Agricultural Research Organization, the Volcani Center Bet Dagan
50250 Israel
| | - Serge Y. Landau
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Department of Natural Resources, Institute of Plant Sciences, Agricultural Research Organization, the Volcani Center Bet Dagan
50250 Israel
| | - John Glendinning
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Department of Biology, Barnard College, Columbia University 3009 Broadway New York NY USA
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Egea AV, Hall JO, Miller J, Spackman C, Villalba JJ. Reduced neophobia: a potential mechanism explaining the emergence of self-medicative behavior in sheep. Physiol Behav 2014; 135:189-97. [PMID: 24955494 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2014.06.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2014] [Revised: 06/06/2014] [Accepted: 06/13/2014] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Gastrointestinal helminths challenge ruminants in ways that reduce their fitness. In turn, ruminants have evolved physiological and behavioral adaptations that counteract this challenge. For instance, emerging behavioral evidence suggests that ruminants self-select medicinal compounds and foods that reduce parasitic burdens. However, the mechanism/s leading to self-medicative behaviors in sick animals is still unknown. We hypothesized that when homeostasis is disturbed by a parasitic infection, consumers should respond by increasing the acceptability of novel foods relative to healthy individuals. Three groups of lambs (N=10) were dosed with 0 (Control-C), 5000 (Medium-M) and 15000 (High-H) L3 stage larvae of Haemonchus contortus. When parasites had reached the adult stage, all animals were offered novel foods and flavors in pens and then novel forages at pasture. Ingestive responses by parasitized lambs were different from non-parasitized Control animals and they varied with the type of food and flavor on offer. Parasitized lambs consumed initially more novel beet pulp and less novel beet pulp mixed with tannins than Control lambs, but the pattern reversed after 9d of exposure to these foods. Parasitized lambs ingested more novel umami-flavored food and less novel bitter-flavored food than Control lambs. When offered choices of novel unflavored and bitter-flavored foods or different forage species to graze, parasitized lambs selected a more diverse array of foods than Control lambs. Reductions in food neophobia or selection of a more diverse diet may enhance the likelihood of sick herbivores encountering novel medicinal plants and nutritious forages that contribute to restore health.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Vanina Egea
- Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas (IADIZA), Mendoza, Argentina
| | - Jeffery O Hall
- Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - James Miller
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
| | - Casey Spackman
- Department of Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - Juan J Villalba
- Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA.
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Václav R, Kalúz S. The effect of herbivore faeces on the edaphic mite community: implications for tapeworm transmission. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2014; 62:377-390. [PMID: 24114339 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-013-9743-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2013] [Accepted: 09/26/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Oribatid mites may be of epidemiological and medical importance because several species have been shown to serve as intermediate hosts for anoplocephalid tapeworms of wild and domestic animals. Despite their economic and conservation significance, relatively few studies examined factors influencing the effective number of oribatid mites that can serve as intermediate hosts. We examined variation in the structure of the edaphic arthropod community in functionally different territory parts of the Alpine marmot (Marmota marmota latirostris), a known definitive host of a prevalent anoplocephalid tapeworm, Ctenotaenia marmotae. We used a field experiment to test whether the abundance of oribatid mites in marmot pastures is affected by the presence of fresh herbivore faeces. We found that the abundance of soil and litter dwelling oribatid mites in marmot pastures did not change shortly after faeces addition. In contrast, numbers of other predominant soil-litter and phoretic microarthropods increased after faeces addition. The abundance of the two predominant phoretic mites colonizing the faeces was inversely related to the abundance of oribatid mites. In contrast, the abundance of a ubiquitous soil-litter mesostigmatid mite was a positive function of oribatid numbers. Although absolute numbers of oribatid mites did not change after faeces addition, our study suggests that, depending on soil quality or type, the probability of tapeworm egg ingestion by oribatid mites can be reduced due to increased interspecific prey-predatory and trophic interactions. Latrine site selection in Alpine marmots is consistent with a reduced probability of tapeworm transmission by oribatids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Radovan Václav
- Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 84506, Bratislava, Slovakia,
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Amit M, Cohen I, Marcovics A, Muklada H, Glasser T, Ungar E, Landau S. Self-medication with tannin-rich browse in goats infected with gastro-intestinal nematodes. Vet Parasitol 2013; 198:305-11. [DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2013.09.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2013] [Revised: 09/13/2013] [Accepted: 09/16/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Su HH, Su YC, Huffman MA. Leaf swallowing and parasitic infection of the Chinese lesser civet Viverricula indica in northeastern Taiwan. Zool Stud 2013. [DOI: 10.1186/1810-522x-52-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Background
Ingestion of plant parts purportedly for their non-nutritive and/or bioactive properties has been widely reported across the animal kingdom. Many of these examples are viewed as behavioral strategies to maintain health by controlling the level of parasite infections. One such behavior is leaf swallowing, the folding and swallowing of whole leaves without chewing. Void of any nutritional benefit, defecation of the whole leaves is associated with the physical expulsion of intestinal parasites. Fecal samples of the Chinese lesser civet Viverricula indica were collected along a fixed transect line monthly for 17 months in the Fushan Experimental Forest, northeastern Taiwan. We inspected samples for the occurrence of undigested leaves and parasite worms to test the possible antiparasitic function of the behavior in this species.
Results
Of the collected feces, 14.3% contained whole, folded, undigested leaves of grass. The co-occurrence of undigested grass and Toxocara paradoxura worms in the feces was statistically significant. Adult worms of T. paradoxura were trapped inside the fecal-grass mass or on the surface of leaves in these samples. Increases in the T. paradoxura prevalence and infection intensity were associated with a higher presence of whole leaves in the feces.
Conclusions
Reported for the first time in the context of self-medication for civet species, we propose that swallowing grass may facilitate expulsion of adult worms of T. paradoxura, which resembles behaviors widely reported in African great apes, bears, and geese.
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DeGabriel JL, Moore BD, Felton AM, Ganzhorn JU, Stolter C, Wallis IR, Johnson CN, Foley WJ. Translating nutritional ecology from the laboratory to the field: milestones in linking plant chemistry to population regulation in mammalian browsers. OIKOS 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2013.00727.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
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Povey S, Cotter SC, Simpson SJ, Wilson K. Dynamics of macronutrient self-medication and illness-induced anorexia in virally infected insects. J Anim Ecol 2013; 83:245-55. [PMID: 24033221 PMCID: PMC4217384 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2013] [Accepted: 07/19/2013] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Some animals change their feeding behaviour when infected with parasites, seeking out substances that enhance their ability to overcome infection. This ‘self-medication’ is typically considered to involve the consumption of toxins, minerals or secondary compounds. However, recent studies have shown that macronutrients can influence the immune response and that pathogen-challenged individuals can self-medicate by choosing a diet rich in protein and low in carbohydrates. Infected individuals might also reduce food intake when infected (i.e. illness-induced anorexia). Here, we examine macronutrient self-medication and illness-induced anorexia in caterpillars of the African armyworm (Spodoptera exempta) by asking how individuals change their feeding decisions over the time course of infection with a baculovirus. We measured self-medication behaviour across several full-sib families to evaluate the plasticity of diet choice and underlying genetic variation. Larvae restricted to diets high in protein (P) and low in carbohydrate (C) were more likely to survive a virus challenge than those restricted to diets with a low P: C ratio. When allowed free choice, virus-challenged individuals chose a higher protein diet than controls. Individuals challenged with either a lethal or sublethal dose of virus increased the P: C ratio of their chosen diets. This was mostly due to a sharp decline in carbohydrate intake, rather than an increased intake of protein, reducing overall food intake, consistent with an illness-induced anorexic response. Over time the P: C ratio of the diet decreased until it matched that of controls. Our study provides the clearest evidence yet for dietary self-medication using macronutrients and shows that the temporal dynamics of feeding behaviour depends on the severity and stage of the infection. The strikingly similar behaviour shown by different families suggests that self-medication is phenotypically plastic and not a consequence of genetically based differences in diet choice between families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Povey
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YQ, UK
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Brambilla A, von Hardenberg A, Kristo O, Bassano B, Bogliani G. Don't spit in the soup: faecal avoidance in foraging wild Alpine ibex, Capra ibex. Anim Behav 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Copani G, Hall JO, Miller J, Priolo A, Villalba JJ. Plant secondary compounds as complementary resources: are they always complementary? Oecologia 2012; 172:1041-9. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-012-2551-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2012] [Accepted: 11/26/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Use of 'natural' products as alternatives to antibiotic feed additives in ruminant production. Animal 2012; 1:1443-66. [PMID: 22444918 DOI: 10.1017/s1751731107000742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 121] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The banning in 2006 of the use of antibiotics as animal growth promoters in the European Union has increased demand from producers for alternative feed additives that can be used to improve animal production. This review gives an overview of the most common non-antibiotic feed additives already being used or that could potentially be used in ruminant nutrition. Probiotics, dicarboxylic acids, enzymes and plant-derived products including saponins, tannins and essential oils are presented. The known modes of action and effects of these additives on feed digestion and more especially on rumen fermentations are described. Their utility and limitations in field conditions for modern ruminant production systems and their compliance with the current legislation are also discussed.
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de Roode JC, Lefèvre T. Behavioral Immunity in Insects. INSECTS 2012; 3:789-820. [PMID: 26466629 PMCID: PMC4553590 DOI: 10.3390/insects3030789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 121] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2012] [Revised: 07/03/2012] [Accepted: 07/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Parasites can dramatically reduce the fitness of their hosts, and natural selection should favor defense mechanisms that can protect hosts against disease. Much work has focused on understanding genetic and physiological immunity against parasites, but hosts can also use behaviors to avoid infection, reduce parasite growth or alleviate disease symptoms. It is increasingly recognized that such behaviors are common in insects, providing strong protection against parasites and parasitoids. We review the current evidence for behavioral immunity in insects, present a framework for investigating such behavior, and emphasize that behavioral immunity may act through indirect rather than direct fitness benefits. We also discuss the implications for host-parasite co-evolution, local adaptation, and the evolution of non-behavioral physiological immune systems. Finally, we argue that the study of behavioral immunity in insects has much to offer for investigations in vertebrates, in which this topic has traditionally been studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacobus C de Roode
- Department of Biology, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
| | - Thierry Lefèvre
- MIVEGEC (UM1-UM2-CNRS 5290-IRD 224), Centre IRD, 911 Av. Agropolis-BP 64501, Montpellier 34394, France.
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Hardy K, Buckley S, Collins MJ, Estalrrich A, Brothwell D, Copeland L, García-Tabernero A, García-Vargas S, Rasilla M, Lalueza-Fox C, Huguet R, Bastir M, Santamaría D, Madella M, Wilson J, Cortés ÁF, Rosas A. Neanderthal medics? Evidence for food, cooking, and medicinal plants entrapped in dental calculus. Naturwissenschaften 2012; 99:617-26. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-012-0942-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 262] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2012] [Revised: 06/26/2012] [Accepted: 06/27/2012] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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Fernández H, Catanese F, Puthod G, Distel R, Villalba J. Depression of rumen ammonia and blood urea by quebracho tannin-containing supplements fed after high-nitrogen diets with no evidence of self-regulation of tannin intake by sheep. Small Rumin Res 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.smallrumres.2012.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Abstract
It is generally accepted by all concerned that modern pharmaceuticals will remain out of reach of many people and ‘health for all’ may only be realized by the use of adequately assessed herbal products. Mankind has been using herbal medicine for healing right from the beginning of human civilization. With the advent of ‘modern medicine’ herbal products have been looked down upon, especially by western societies. Yet, in recent times, use of herbal medicine for heathcare has increased steadily all over the world. However, serious concerns are being realized regarding the safety, claimed efficacy and quality of herbal products used as herbal medicine, nutraceuticals, health food and cosmetics. Although herbal products are generally considered safe due to their age-old usage, significant side effects have been reported for many herbal products, including herbal medicine. Accidental contamination and intentional adulteration are considered as primary reasons for the side effects. The historical perspective and the philosophy of herbal medical practice along with its present status in the light of present day science have been reviewed and included in the present article. Assurance of safety by identification of contaminants and assessment of toxicity has been outlined. Assessment of claimed efficacy of herbal medicine is difficult due to its holistic approach. Practical ways of assessing efficacy of herbal medicine by adapting the methodologies used for modern pharmaceutical are described. The maintenance of standard of herbal medicine has been stressed and pragmatic approaches of assuring quality of herbal medicine by using modern tools of fingerprinting the chemical profile of herbal medicine are discussed. As much of the traditional herbal medical knowledge is scattered around the world at the family and community levels, and more so in the indigeneous people, the knowledge base is continuously being lost and so needs immediate documentation. Difficulties in documentation due to concerns of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) have been highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Mosihuzzaman
- International Centre for Natural Product Research (ICNPR), Bangladesh Institute of Health Sciences (BIHS), Dhaka, Bangladesh
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42
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Simone-Finstrom MD, Spivak M. Increased resin collection after parasite challenge: a case of self-medication in honey bees? PLoS One 2012; 7:e34601. [PMID: 22479650 PMCID: PMC3315539 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0034601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2011] [Accepted: 03/02/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The constant pressure posed by parasites has caused species throughout the animal kingdom to evolve suites of mechanisms to resist infection. Individual barriers and physiological defenses are considered the main barriers against parasites in invertebrate species. However, behavioral traits and other non-immunological defenses can also effectively reduce parasite transmission and infection intensity. In social insects, behaviors that reduce colony-level parasite loads are termed "social immunity." One example of a behavioral defense is resin collection. Honey bees forage for plant-produced resins and incorporate them into their nest architecture. This use of resins can reduce chronic elevation of an individual bee's immune response. Since high activation of individual immunity can impose colony-level fitness costs, collection of resins may benefit both the individual and colony fitness. However the use of resins as a more direct defense against pathogens is unclear. Here we present evidence that honey bee colonies may self-medicate with plant resins in response to a fungal infection. Self-medication is generally defined as an individual responding to infection by ingesting or harvesting non-nutritive compounds or plant materials. Our results show that colonies increase resin foraging rates after a challenge with a fungal parasite (Ascophaera apis: chalkbrood or CB). Additionally, colonies experimentally enriched with resin had decreased infection intensities of this fungal parasite. If considered self-medication, this is a particularly unique example because it operates at the colony level. Most instances of self-medication involve pharmacophagy, whereby individuals change their diet in response to direct infection with a parasite. In this case with honey bees, resins are not ingested but used within the hive by adult bees exposed to fungal spores. Thus the colony, as the unit of selection, may be responding to infection through self-medication by increasing the number of individuals that forage for resin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael D Simone-Finstrom
- Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America.
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44
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Nutritional manipulation of sheep and goats for the control of gastrointestinal nematodes under hot humid and subhumid tropical conditions. Small Rumin Res 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.smallrumres.2011.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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45
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Parasites or cohabitants: cruel omnipresent usurpers or creative "éminences grises"? J Parasitol Res 2011; 2011:214174. [PMID: 21785696 PMCID: PMC3140032 DOI: 10.1155/2011/214174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2011] [Accepted: 04/06/2011] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
This paper presents many types of interplays between parasites and the host, showing the history of parasites, the effects of parasites on the outcome of wars, invasions, migrations, and on the development of numerous regions of the globe, and the impact of parasitic diseases on the society and on the course of human evolution. It also emphasizes the pressing need to change the look at the parasitism phenomenon, proposing that the term “cohabitant” is more accurate than parasite, because every living being, from bacteria to mammals, is a consortium of living beings in the pangenome. Even the term parasitology should be replaced by cohabitology because there is no parasite alone and host alone: both together compose a new adaptive system: the parasitized-host or the cohabitant-cohabited being. It also suggests switching the old paradigm based on attrition and destruction, to a new one founded on adaptation and living together.
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Abstract
We present a graphical approach, which we believe can help to integrate nutrition into the broader biological sciences, and introduce generality into the applied nutritional sciences. This ‘Geometric Framework’ takes account of the fact that animals need multiple nutrients in changing amounts and balance, and that nutrients come packaged in foods that are often hard to find, dangerous to subdue and costly to process. We then show how the Geometric Framework has been used to understand the links between nutrition and relevant aspects of the biology of individual animals. These aspects include the physiological mechanisms that direct the nutritional interactions of the animal with its environment, and the fitness consequences of these interactions. Having considered the implications of diet for individuals, we show that these effects can translate into the collective behaviour of groups and societies, and in turn ramify throughout food webs to influence the structure of ecosystems.
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47
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Lefèvre T, Oliver L, Hunter MD, De Roode JC. Evidence for trans-generational medication in nature. Ecol Lett 2010; 13:1485-93. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01537.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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48
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49
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Mentaberre G, Serrano E, Velarde R, Marco I, Lavin S, Mateos A, de Juan L, Domínguez L, Olivé X, Romeva J. Absence of TB in Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica) in a high-risk area. Vet Rec 2010; 166:700. [PMID: 20511661 DOI: 10.1136/vr.c2552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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50
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Villalba JJ, Provenza FD, Hall JO, Lisonbee LD. Selection of tannins by sheep in response to gastrointestinal nematode infection1. J Anim Sci 2010; 88:2189-98. [DOI: 10.2527/jas.2009-2272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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