Temporal effect of feeding on the body temperature and behaviour of captive koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Free-ranging koalas generally feed at night; however, captive koalas are usually fed during the day in order to encourage activity for display purposes. We studied the temporal effect of feeding on body temperature of captive koalas in Queensland, to determine whether nocturnal feeding may be beneficial for koalas in warmer climates. Six adult koalas were implanted with thermal transmitters and data loggers, waxed together as a single package, to record internal body temperature. Koalas were exposed to two treatments: koalas were fed in the morning (between 0730 and 0830 hours) during the AM treatment or late afternoon (between 1700 and 1800 hours) for the PM treatment. The body temperature of koalas fed in the mornings was on average 0.5°C higher at its peak (P ≤ 0.01) when compared to koalas fed in the evening. Furthermore, the body temperature maxima of morning-fed koalas was reached ~2 h earlier in the afternoon, compared with those fed in the evening. There was no significant difference between behaviours associated with the two feeding regimes: inactivity (P = 0.840), feeding (P = 0.472) and activity (P = 0.634). We postulate that nocturnal feeding by koalas may be an adaptive mechanism that reduces diurnal heat load during times of high environmental temperatures.

Orchitis and Epididymitis in Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) Infected With Chlamydia pecorum

Although Chlamydia causes disease of the urethra and prostate of male koalas, its impact on the testis and epididymis has not been examined. This study describes chronic-active and granulomatous orchitis and epididymitis with interstitial fibrosis associated with infection by Chlamydia pecorum in 2 of 18 adult male koalas being euthanized at a koala hospital, 8 of which also had chlamydial prostatitis. By immunohistochemistry and transmission electron microscopy, chlamydial inclusions were demonstrated within Sertoli cells directly associated with mild inflammation surrounding intact seminiferous and epididymal tubules, marked pyogranulomatous inflammation around disrupted tubules, replacement of tubules by interstitial fibrosis, and aspermia. The presence of C. pecorum but not Chlamydia pneumoniae was detected by quantitative polymerase chain reaction of formalin-fixed tissues of the left and right testes and right epididymis in 1 animal. This is the first report of orchitis and epididymitis in a koala infected with C. pecorum.

Human intestinal trefoil factor is expressed in human hypothalamus and pituitary: evidence for a novel neuropeptide

Human intestinal trefoil factor, hITF, a secretory polypeptide found mainly in the human gastrointestinal tract, is a member of the newly characterized trefoil factor or P-domain peptide family representing putative growth factors. Here we describe the identification of this gut peptide in the human brain and pituitary. With reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, we were able to isolate and clone the transcript from human hypothalamus. An antibody generated against a synthetic peptide derived from the carboxyl terminus of hITF was used for immunohistochemical studies of appropriate tissue sections. Neurons expressing hITF were identified in two magnocellular hypothalamic nuclei, the paraventricular and periventricular nuclei. hITF polypeptide was also observed in Herring bodies of the neurohypophysis and in secretory cells of the adenohypophysis. Double immunostaining with antigrowth hormone antibody showed partial coexistence in a selected subpopulation of adenohypophysial cells. Localization of hITF in the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system may suggest a modulatory action on the classical magnocellular nonapeptides vasopressin and oxytocin, and further indicates an adenohypophysial importance of this peptide. It is likely that hITF represents a novel neuropeptide of yet unknown function.