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Dzialo M, Bryła A, DeMoranville KJ, Carbeck KM, Fatica O, Trost L, Pierce B, Sadowska ET, McWilliams SR, Bauchinger U. Concerted phenotypic flexibility of avian erythrocyte size and number in response to dietary anthocyanin supplementation. Front Zool 2023; 20:9. [PMID: 36829190 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-023-00487-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 02/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Endurance flight impose substantial oxidative costs on the avian oxygen delivery system. In particular, the accumulation of irreversible damage in red blood cells can reduce the capacity of blood to transport oxygen and limit aerobic performance. Many songbirds consume large amounts of anthocyanin-rich fruit, which is hypothesized to reduce oxidative costs, enhance post-flight regeneration, and enable greater aerobic capacity. While their antioxidant benefits appear most straightforward, the effects of anthocyanins on blood composition remain so far unknown. We fed thirty hand-raised European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) two semisynthetic diets (with or without anthocyanin supplement) and manipulated the extent of flight activity in a wind tunnel (daily flying or non-flying for over two weeks) to test for their interactive effects on functionally important haematological variables. RESULTS Supplemented birds had on average 15% more and 4% smaller red blood cells compared to non-supplemented individuals and these diet effects were independent of flight manipulation. Haemoglobin content was 7% higher in non-supplemented flying birds compared to non-flying birds, while similar haemoglobin content was observed among supplemented birds that were flown or not. Neither diet nor flight activity influenced haematocrit. CONCLUSION The concerted adjustments suggest that supplementation generally improved antioxidant protection in blood, which could prevent the excess removal of cells from the bloodstream and may have several implications on the oxygen delivery system, including improved gas exchange and blood flow. The flexible haematological response to dietary anthocyanins may also suggest that free-ranging species preferentially consume anthocyanin-rich fruits for their natural blood doping, oxygen delivery-enhancement effects.
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González-Medina E, Playà-Montmany N, Cabello-Vergel J, Parejo M, Abad-Gómez JM, Sánchez-Guzmán JM, Villegas A, Gutiérrez JS, Masero JA. Mediterranean songbirds show pronounced seasonal variation in thermoregulatory traits. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2023; 280:111408. [PMID: 36812978 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.111408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2022] [Revised: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/22/2023]
Abstract
Addressing the patterns of variation in thermal traits is crucial to better predict the potential effects of climate change on organisms. Here, we assessed seasonal (winter vs summer) adjustments in key thermoregulatory traits in eight Mediterranean-resident songbirds. Overall, songbirds increased whole-animal (by 8%) and mass-adjusted (by 9%) basal metabolic rate and decreased (by 56%) thermal conductance below the thermoneutral zone during winter. The magnitude of these changes was within the lower values found in songbirds from northern temperate areas. Moreover, songbirds increased (by 11%) evaporative water loss within the thermoneutral zone during summer, while its rate of increase above the inflection point of evaporative water loss (i.e., the slope of evaporative water loss versus temperature) decreased by 35% during summer - a value well above that reported for other temperate and tropical songbirds. Finally, body mass increased by 5% during winter, a pattern similar to that found in many northern temperate species. Our findings support the idea that physiological adjustments might enhance the resilience of Mediterranean songbirds to environmental changes, with short-term benefits by saving energy and water under thermally stressful conditions. Nevertheless, not all species showed the same patterns, suggesting different strategies in their thermoregulatory adaptations to seasonal environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erick González-Medina
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain.
| | - Núria Playà-Montmany
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain. https://twitter.com/NuriaPlayaM
| | - Julián Cabello-Vergel
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Manuel Parejo
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain
| | - José M Abad-Gómez
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Juan M Sánchez-Guzmán
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain; Ecology in the Anthropocene, Associated Unit CSIC-UEX, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Auxiliadora Villegas
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain; Ecology in the Anthropocene, Associated Unit CSIC-UEX, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain. https://twitter.com/AuxVil
| | - Jorge S Gutiérrez
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain; Ecology in the Anthropocene, Associated Unit CSIC-UEX, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain. https://twitter.com/JSGutierrez
| | - José A Masero
- Ecology in the Anthropocene, Associated Unit CSIC-UEX, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Extremadura, 06006 Badajoz, Spain. https://twitter.com/jamasero
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Sun CY, Fu SJ, Zeng LQ. Social isolation does not alter the relationship between flexibility in metabolic rate and growth in grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) under changing food availability. J Comp Physiol B 2023; 193:95-108. [PMID: 36355208 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-022-01467-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Growth and energy metabolism are highly flexible in fish species in response to food availability, and these two traits depend to some extent on the social rearing environment (e.g., isolated vs. group rearing). Currently, how social rearing environments influence flexibility in metabolic rate of fish and their ecological consequences (e.g., somatic growth) remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated how social isolation (i.e., group-reared vs. isolation-reared) and food availability (i.e., high vs. low) affect metabolic rates, growth and their correlations in a group-living fish, grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), which were subjected to a 4-week growth experiment. The metabolic rates (e.g., standard metabolic rate, SMR; maximum metabolic rate, MMR; aerobic scope, AS = MMR-SMR) and morphology (e.g., body mass and length) of the fish in four treatments were measured at the beginning and end of the growth experiment, and then the growth parameters (e.g., food intake, FI; feeding efficiency, FE; and specific growth rate, SGR) were also obtained. We found that social isolation did impair growth of fish with individuals showing a lower SGR compared to those group-reared fish irrespective of food availability. However, the growth advantage of group-reared fish under two food availabilities did not result from their FIs or FEs. Metabolic rates (i.e., SMR) seemed to decrease in response to social isolation, but increased greater when fish were reared at high food ration. These shifts in metabolic rates were positively linked with individual differences in somatic growth; individuals who increased metabolic rates more grew faster, while those who increased their metabolic rates less or even reduced had a lower growth, but these links were independent on both social isolation and food ration. These results suggested that social isolation can inhibit the growth of individual fish, but not the AS. Flexibility in metabolic rates could confer a growth advantage under changing food availability, but the links between variation in energy metabolism and growth were not altered by social deprivation. Our study demonstrates the importance of metabolic plasticity accounting for inter-individual difference in growth performance under the challenges of changing food resource.
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Tapper S, Nocera JJ, Burness G. Body temperature is a repeatable trait in a free-ranging passerine bird. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:272129. [PMID: 34498672 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.243057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Body temperature (Tb) affects animal function through its influence on rates of biochemical and biophysical reactions, the molecular structures of proteins and tissues, and, ultimately, organismal performance. Despite its importance in driving physiological processes, there are few data on how much variation in Tb exists within populations of organisms, and whether this variation consistently differs among individuals over time (i.e. repeatability of a trait). Here, using thermal radio-frequency identification implants, we quantified the repeatability of Tb, both in the context of a fixed average environment (∼21°C) and across ambient temperatures (6-31°C), in a free-living population of tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor, n=16). By experimentally trimming the ventral plumage of a subset of female swallows (n=8), we also asked whether the repeatability of Tb is influenced by the capacity to dissipate body heat. We found that both female and male tree swallow Tb was repeatable at 21°C (R=0.89-92), but female Tb was less repeatable than male Tb across ambient temperature (Rfemale=0.10, Rmale=0.58), which may be due to differences in parental investment. Trimmed birds had on average lower Tb than control birds (by ∼0.5°C), but the repeatability of female Tb did not differ as a function of heat dissipation capacity. This suggests that trimmed individuals adjusted their Tb to account for the effects of heat loss on Tb. Our study provides a first critical step toward understanding whether Tb is responsive to natural selection, and for predicting how animal populations will respond to climatic warming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Tapper
- Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Department, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, Canada, K9L 0G2
| | - Joseph J Nocera
- Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management, University of New Brunswick, 28 Dineen Drive, Fredericton, NB, Canada, E3B 5A3
| | - Gary Burness
- Department of Biology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, Canada, K9L 0G2
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5
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Abstract
Body temperature (Tb) affects animal function through its influence on rates of biochemical and biophysical reactions, the molecular structures of proteins and tissues, and, ultimately, organismal performance. Despite its importance in driving physiological processes, there are few data on how much variation in Tb exists within populations of organisms, and whether this variation consistently differs among individuals over time (i.e. repeatability of a trait). Here, using thermal radio-frequency identification implants, we quantified the repeatability of Tb, both in the context of a fixed average environment (∼21°C) and across ambient temperatures (6-31°C), in a free-living population of tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor, n=16). By experimentally trimming the ventral plumage of a subset of female swallows (n=8), we also asked whether the repeatability of Tb is influenced by the capacity to dissipate body heat. We found that both female and male tree swallow Tb was repeatable at 21°C (R=0.89-92), but female Tb was less repeatable than male Tb across ambient temperature (Rfemale=0.10, Rmale=0.58), which may be due to differences in parental investment. Trimmed birds had on average lower Tb than control birds (by ∼0.5°C), but the repeatability of female Tb did not differ as a function of heat dissipation capacity. This suggests that trimmed individuals adjusted their Tb to account for the effects of heat loss on Tb. Our study provides a first critical step toward understanding whether Tb is responsive to natural selection, and for predicting how animal populations will respond to climatic warming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Tapper
- Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Department, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, Canada, K9L 0G2
| | - Joseph J Nocera
- Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management, University of New Brunswick, 28 Dineen Drive, Fredericton, NB, Canada, E3B 5A3
| | - Gary Burness
- Department of Biology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, Canada, K9L 0G2
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6
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Robertson CE, McClelland GB. Ancestral and developmental cold alter brown adipose tissue function and adult thermal acclimation in Peromyscus. J Comp Physiol B 2021; 191:589-601. [PMID: 33644836 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-021-01355-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2020] [Revised: 01/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Small, non-hibernating endotherms increase their thermogenic capacity to survive seasonal cold, through adult phenotypic flexibility. In mammals, this response is primarily driven by remodeling of brown adipose tissue (BAT), which matures postnatally in altricial species. In many regions, ambient temperatures can vary dramatically throughout the breeding season. We used second-generation lab-born Peromyscus leucopus, cold exposed during two critical developmental windows, to test the hypothesis that adult phenotypic flexibility to cold is influenced by rearing temperature. We found that cold exposure during the postnatal period (14 °C, birth to 30 days) accelerated BAT maturation and permanently remodeled this tissue. As adults, these mice had increased BAT activity and thermogenic capacity relative to controls. However, they also had a blunted acclimation response when subsequently cold exposed as adults (5 °C for 6 weeks). Mice born to cold-exposed mothers (14 °C, entire pregnancy) also showed limited capacity for flexibility as adults, demonstrating that maternal cold stress programs the offspring thermal acclimation response. In contrast, for P. maniculatus adapted to the cold high alpine, BAT maturation rate was unaffected by rearing temperature. However, both postnatal and prenatal cold exposure limited the thermal acclimation response in these cold specialists. Our results suggest a complex interaction between developmental and adult environment, influenced strongly by ancestry, drives thermogenic capacity in the wild.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Grant B McClelland
- Department of Biology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, L8S 4K1, Canada
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Brun A, Magallanes ME, Karasov WH, Caviedes-Vidal E. Rapid and parallel changes in activity and mRNA of intestinal peptidase to match altered dietary protein levels in juvenile house sparrows ( Passer domesticus). J Exp Biol 2021; 224:jeb234708. [PMID: 33288529 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.234708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Although dietary flexibility in digestive enzyme activity (i.e. reaction rate) is widespread in vertebrates, mechanisms are poorly understood. When laboratory rats are switched to a higher protein diet, the activities of apical intestinal peptidases increase within 15 h, in some cases by rapid increase in enzyme transcription followed by rapid translation and translocation to the intestine's apical, brush-border membrane (BBM). Focusing on aminopeptidase-N (APN), we studied intestinal digestive enzyme flexibility in birds, relying on activity and mRNA data from the same animals. Our model was nestling house sparrows (Passer domesticus), already known to modulate intestinal peptidase activity when switching between lower and higher protein diets. Twenty-four hours after a switch from an adequate, lower protein diet to a higher protein diet, APN activity was increased in both whole intestinal tissue homogenates and in isolated BBM, but not at 12 h post-diet switch. Twenty-four hours after a reverse switch back to the lower protein diet, APN activity was decreased, but not at 12 h post-diet switch. Changes in APN activity in both diet switch experiments were associated with parallel changes in APN mRNA. Although transcriptional changes seem to be an important mechanism underlying dietary modulation of intestinal peptidase in both nestling house sparrows and laboratory rodents, the time course for modulation in nestlings seemed slower (taking approximately twice as long) compared with laboratory rodents. It may be ecologically advantageous if nestlings biochemically restructure their gut in response to a sustained increase in insects and protein intake rather than one or a few lucky insect meals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Brun
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
| | - Melisa E Magallanes
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
| | - William H Karasov
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Enrique Caviedes-Vidal
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
- Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Departamento de Biología, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
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8
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Whelan S, Hatch SA, Benowitz-Fredericks ZM, Parenteau C, Chastel O, Elliott KH. The effects of food supply on reproductive hormones and timing of reproduction in an income-breeding seabird. Horm Behav 2021; 127:104874. [PMID: 33191199 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2020] [Revised: 10/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Current food supply is a major driver of timing of breeding in income-breeding animals, likely because increased net energy balance directly increases reproductive hormones and advances breeding. In capital breeders, increased net energy balance increases energy reserves, which eventually leads to improved reproductive readiness and earlier breeding. To test the hypothesis that phenology of income-breeding birds is independent of energy reserves, we conducted an experiment on food-supplemented ("fed") and control female black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla). We temporarily increased energy costs (via weight handicap) in a 2 × 2 design (fed/unfed; handicapped/unhandicapped) during the pre-laying period and observed movement via GPS-accelerometry. We measured body mass, baseline hormones (corticosterone; luteinising hormone) before and after handicap manipulation, and conducted a gonadotropin-releasing hormone challenge. Females from all treatment groups foraged in similar areas, implying that individuals could adjust time spent foraging, but had low flexibility to adjust foraging distance. Consistent with the idea that income breeders do not accumulate reserves in response to increased food supply, fed birds remained within an energy ceiling by reducing time foraging instead of increasing energy reserves. Moreover, body mass remained constant until the onset of follicle development 20 days prior to laying regardless of feeding or handicap, implying that females were using a 'lean and fit' approach to body mass rather than accumulating lipid reserves for breeding. Increased food supply advanced endocrine and laying phenology and altered interactions between the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, but higher energy costs (handicap) had little effect. Consistent with our hypothesis, increased food supply (but not net energy balance) advanced endocrine and laying phenology in income-breeding birds without any impact on energy reserves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon Whelan
- Department of Natural Resources Sciences, McGill University, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, Canada.
| | - Scott A Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage, AK, USA
| | | | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, UMR-7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-Université de La Rochelle, UMR-7372, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Kyle H Elliott
- Department of Natural Resources Sciences, McGill University, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, Canada
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Wojciechowski MS, Kowalczewska A, Colominas-Ciuró R, Jefimow M. Phenotypic flexibility in heat production and heat loss in response to thermal and hydric acclimation in the zebra finch, a small arid-zone passerine. J Comp Physiol B 2021; 191:225-39. [PMID: 33070274 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-020-01322-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2020] [Revised: 09/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
To maintain constant body temperature (Tb) over a wide range of ambient temperatures (Ta) endothermic animals require large amounts of energy and water. In hot environments, the main threat to endothermic homeotherms is insufficient water to supply that necessary for thermoregulation. We investigated flexible adjustment of traits related to thermoregulation and water conservation during acclimation to hot conditions or restricted water availability, or both, in the zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata a small arid-zone passerine. Using indirect calorimetry, we measured changes in whole animal metabolic rate (MR), evaporative heat loss (EHL) and Tb before and after acclimation to 23 or 40 °C, with different availability of water. Additionally, we quantified changes in partitioning of EHL into respiratory and cutaneous avenues in birds exposed to 25 and 40 °C. In response to heat and water restriction zebra finches decreased MR, which together with unchanged EHL resulted in increased efficiency of evaporative heat loss. This facilitated more precise Tb regulation in heat-acclimated birds. Acclimation temperature and water availability had no effect on the partitioning of EHL into cutaneous or respiratory avenues. At 25 °C, cutaneous EHL accounted for ~ 60% of total EHL, while at 40 °C, its contribution decreased to ~ 20%. Consistent among-individual differences in MR and EHL suggest that these traits, provided that they are heritable, may be a subject to natural selection. We conclude that phenotypic flexibility in metabolic heat production associated with acclimation to hot, water-scarce conditions is crucial in response to changing environmental conditions, especially in the face of current and predicted climate change.
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Wickramasinghe K, Mathers JC, Wopereis S, Marsman DS, Griffiths JC. From lifespan to healthspan: the role of nutrition in healthy ageing. J Nutr Sci 2020; 9:e33. [PMID: 33101660 PMCID: PMC7550962 DOI: 10.1017/jns.2020.26] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Across the globe, there has been a marked increase in longevity, but significant inequalities remain. These are exacerbated by inadequate access to proper nutrition and health care services and to reliable information to make the decisions related to nutrition and health care. Many in economically developing as well as developed societies are plagued with the double-burden of energy excess and undernutrition. This has resulted in mental and physical deterioration, increased non-communicable disease rates, lost productivity, increased medical costs and reduced quality of life. While adequate nutrition is fundamental to good health at all stages of the life course, the impact of diet on prolonging good quality of life during ageing remains unclear. For progress to continue, there is need for new and/or innovative approaches to promoting health as individuals age, as well as qualitative and quantitative biomarkers and other accepted tools that can measure improvements in physiological integrity throughout life. A framework for progress has been proposed by the World Health Organization in their Global Strategy and Action Plan on Ageing and Health. Here, we focused on the impact of nutrition within this framework, which takes a broad, person-centred emphasis on healthy ageing, stressing the need to better understand each individual's intrinsic capacity, their functional abilities at various life stages, and the impact of their mental, and physical health, as well as the environments they inhabit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kremlin Wickramasinghe
- WHO European Office for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (NCD Office), Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - John C. Mathers
- Human Nutrition Research Centre, Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon TyneNE2 4HH, UK
| | - Suzan Wopereis
- Research Group Microbiology and Systems Biology, Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), Zeist, NL-3704 HE, The Netherlands
| | | | - James C. Griffiths
- International and Scientific Affairs, Council for Responsible Nutrition-International, Washington, DC20036, USA
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Noakes MJ, Karasov WH, McKechnie AE. Seasonal variation in body composition in an Afrotropical passerine bird: increases in pectoral muscle mass are, unexpectedly, associated with lower thermogenic capacity. J Comp Physiol B 2020; 190:371-380. [PMID: 32189062 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-020-01273-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2019] [Revised: 02/22/2020] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Phenotypic flexibility in avian metabolic rates and body composition have been well-studied in high-latitude species, which typically increase basal metabolic rate (BMR) and summit metabolism (Msum) when acclimatized to winter conditions. Patterns of seasonal metabolic acclimatization are more variable in lower-latitude birds that experience milder winters, with fewer studies investigating adjustments in avian organ and muscle masses in the context of metabolic flexibility in these regions. We quantified seasonal variation (summer vs winter) in the masses of organs and muscles frequently associated with changes in BMR (gizzard, intestines and liver) and Msum (heart and pectoral muscles), in white-browed sparrow-weavers (Plocepasser mahali). We also measured pectoral muscle thickness using a portable ultrasound system to determine whether we could non-lethally estimate muscle size. A concurrent study measured seasonal changes in BMR and Msum in the same population of sparrow-weavers, but different individuals. There was no seasonal variation in the dry masses of the gizzard, intestines or liver of sparrow-weavers, and during the same period, BMR did not vary seasonally. We found significantly higher heart (~ 18% higher) and pectoral muscle (~ 9% higher) dry mass during winter, although ultrasound measurements did not detect seasonal changes in pectoral muscle size. Despite winter increases in pectoral muscle mass, Msum was ~ 26% lower in winter compared to summer. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report an increase in avian pectoral muscle mass but a concomitant decrease in thermogenic capacity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Noakes
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | - William H Karasov
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Andrew E McKechnie
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa.
- South African Research Chair in Conservation Physiology, South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
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12
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Rossi GS, Cochrane PV, Tunnah L, Wright PA. Ageing impacts phenotypic flexibility in an air-acclimated amphibious fish. J Comp Physiol B 2019; 189:567-579. [PMID: 31520114 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-019-01234-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2019] [Revised: 07/24/2019] [Accepted: 08/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The ability to tolerate environmental change may decline as fishes age. We tested the hypothesis that ageing influences the scope for phenotypic flexibility in the mangrove rivulus (Kryptolebias marmoratus), an amphibious fish that transitions between two vastly different environments, water and land. We found that older fish (4-6 years old) exhibited marked signs of ageing; older fish were reproductively senescent, had reduced fin regenerative capacity and body condition, and exhibited atrophy of both oxidative and glycolytic muscle fibers relative to younger adult fish (1-2 years old). However, age did not affect routine O2 consumption. We then acclimated adult fish (1-6 years) to water (control) or air for 10 days to assess the scope for phenotypic flexibility in response to terrestrial exposure. In support of our hypothesis, we found that older air-acclimated fish had a diminished scope for gill remodeling relative to younger fish. We also found that older fish exhibited poorer terrestrial locomotor performance relative to younger adult fish, particularly when acclimated to air. Our results indicate that ageing diminishes skeletal muscle integrity and locomotor performance of amphibious fishes, and may, therefore, impair terrestrial foraging ability, predator avoidance, or dispersal across the terrestrial environment. Remarkably, older fish voluntarily left water to a similar degree as younger fish despite the age-related deterioration of traits important for terrestrial life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia S Rossi
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Paige V Cochrane
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Louise Tunnah
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Patricia A Wright
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada.
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Noakes MJ, McKechnie AE. Reaction norms for heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity do not vary across a climatic gradient in a passerine bird. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2019; 236:110522. [PMID: 31278988 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.06.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2019] [Revised: 06/02/2019] [Accepted: 06/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for considerable phenotypic flexibility in endotherm thermal physiology, a phenomenon with far-reaching implications for the evolution of traits related to heat tolerance. Numerous studies have documented intraspecific variation in avian thermoregulatory traits, but few have revealed the shapes of thermoregulatory reaction norms or how these might vary among populations. We investigated phenotypic flexibility in the ability of a model Afrotropical passerine bird (the white-browed sparrow-weaver, Plocepasser mahali) to handle high air temperatures (Ta). We allocated birds from three sites varying by ~ 11 °C in mean daily summer maximum Ta to three acclimation temperature (Taccl) treatments (daytime Taccl ≈ 30 °C, 36 °C or 42 °C respectively; n ≈ 10 per site per Taccl). After an acclimation period of 30 days, heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity was quantified by exposing birds to progressively higher Ta until they approached severe hyperthermia (body temperature [Tb] = 44.5 °C; Ta range: 38-54 °C). We measured metabolic rate and evaporative water loss using open flow-through respirometry, and Tb using temperature-sensitive passive-integrated transponder tags. Hyperthermia threshold Ta (Ta,HT) was significantly higher and Tb significantly lower in birds acclimated to the hottest Taccl compared to those from milder acclimation treatments. Population (i.e., site of capture) was not a significant predictor of any thermoregulatory variables or hyperthermia threshold Ta (Ta,HT) after acclimation, revealing that the shape of reaction norms for heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity does not vary among these three populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Noakes
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Andrew E McKechnie
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa; South African Research Chair in Conservation Physiology, National Zoological Garden, South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
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Ling H, Fu SJ, Zeng LQ. Predator stress decreases standard metabolic rate and growth in juvenile crucian carp under changing food availability. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2019; 231:149-157. [PMID: 30802626 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2018] [Revised: 02/12/2019] [Accepted: 02/14/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Animals adapt to the challenges of fluctuations in predator risk and food availability in their natural habitats. Phenotypic plasticity allows animals to handle environmental changes. However, the patterns of flexibility in metabolic rates and its ecological consequences under different predator stress and food availability conditions are poorly understood. Here, we used crucial carp (Carassius auratus) as a prey species and northern snakehead (Channa argus) as a predator to test whether predator stress influences metabolism and growth, and alters the link between flexibility in metabolic rate and its ecological consequences (e.g., growth) in crucial carp. The experiment was carried out under the conditions of predator stress (with or without a predator) and three food availabilities (satiation feeding 1 time per day, low food availability; 2 times per day, intermediate food availability; and 3 times per day, high food availability) for 3 weeks. After 21 days of feeding, the final body mass and body length in the two treatments increased compared to the initial values in all three food availabilities. The feeding intake (FI) and specific growth rate (SGR) of the two treatments increased with increasing food availability. The control treatment had a higher FI and SGR than the predator stress treatment in all three food availabilities. The feeding efficiency (FE) of the two treatments was higher at the high and intermediate food availabilities than at the low food availability. However, no effect of predator stress on FE was detected. The final values of original or standardized SMR were higher in the control treatment than the predator stress treatment at the intermediate and high food availabilities. The changes in SMR (ΔSMR) were higher in the control treatment than in the predator stress treatment. The positive correlation between the ΔSMR and SGR was found in the intermediate food availability in the predator stress treatment, suggesting that individuals with a higher flexibility in SMR had a larger growth rate and vice versa, but this relationship was dependent on food availability. Our results suggest that predator stress decreased maintenance metabolism, feeding and growth of juvenile crucial carp irrespective of food availability. Predator stress does not alter the growth advantages conferred by the metabolic plasticity of the fish under changing food availability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong Ling
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Shi-Jian Fu
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Ling-Qing Zeng
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China.
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15
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Rimbach R, Blanc S, Zahariev A, Gatta M, Pillay N, Schradin C. Seasonal variation in energy expenditure in a rodent inhabiting a winter-rainfall desert. J Comp Physiol B 2018; 188:877-88. [PMID: 29948157 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-018-1168-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2018] [Revised: 05/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Animals that spend more energy than they obtain risk entering allostatic overload, reducing survival and fitness. They are predicted to adjust their daily energy expenditure (DEE) during periods of food scarcity. Adjustments of DEE to changes in food availability have been well-studied in species in temperate zones during winter, but less so in species enduring seasonal droughts. Likely mechanisms regulating DEE involve adjustments of activity and maintenance metabolism. Species that experience seasonal droughts and changes in food availability, like the African striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio), are appropriate model organisms to study the regulation of seasonal changes of DEE. We quantified DEE using the 'doubly labelled water' method, measured resting metabolic rate (RMR), and concomitantly determined activity levels using all-day focal observations of 69 free-living striped mice in the cold moist season with high food availability and the hot dry season with low food availability. Striped mice decreased their DEE in the food scarce dry season using multiple mechanisms, especially reductions in RMR, and reduced overall physical activity. This was further facilitated passively by reduced thermoregulatory costs. Our study demonstrates that animals reduce DEE via active and passive mechanisms in food-restricted environments, and highlights that several environmental factors should be considered simultaneously when aiming to understand how animals cope with harsh environments.
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16
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Zeng LQ, Fu C, Fu SJ. The effects of temperature and food availability on growth, flexibility in metabolic rates and their relationships in juvenile common carp. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2017; 217:26-34. [PMID: 29275188 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2017.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Revised: 12/19/2017] [Accepted: 12/19/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Flexibility in phenotypic traits can allow organisms to handle environmental changes. However, the ecological consequences of flexibility in metabolic rates are poorly understood. Here, we investigated whether the links between growth and flexibility in metabolic rates vary between two temperatures. Common carp Cyprinus carpio were raised in three temperature treatments [the 18°C, 28°C and 28°C-food control (28°C-FC)] and fed to satiation of receiving food either once or twice daily for 4weeks. The morphology and metabolic rates (standard metabolic rate, SMR; maximum metabolic rate, MMR) were measured at the beginning and end of the experiment. The mean total food ingested by fish in the 28°C-FC treatment was the same as that by fish in the 18°C treatment at each food availability. The final SMR (not MMR and aerobic scope, AS=MMR-SMR) increased more in the 28°C and 28°C-FC treatments with twice-daily feedings than once-daily feedings. Fish in the 28°C treatment had a higher specific growth rate (SGR) than fish in the 28°C-FC and 18°C treatments at both food availabilities. However, no differences in feeding efficiency (FE) were found among the three treatments in fish fed twice daily. The flexibility in SMR was related to individual differences in SGR, not with food intake and FE; individuals who increased their SMR more had a smaller growth performance with twice-daily feedings at 28°C, but it did not exist at 18°C. Flexibility in SMR provides a growth advantage in juvenile common carp experiencing changes in food availability and this link is temperature-dependent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling-Qing Zeng
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China.
| | - Cheng Fu
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Shi-Jian Fu
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing 401331, China
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17
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Kohl KD, Brun A, Magallanes M, Brinkerhoff J, Laspiur A, Acosta JC, Bordenstein SR, Caviedes-Vidal E. Physiological and microbial adjustments to diet quality permit facultative herbivory in an omnivorous lizard. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 219:1903-12. [PMID: 27307545 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.138370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2016] [Accepted: 03/31/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
While herbivory is a common feeding strategy in a number of vertebrate classes, less than 4% of squamate reptiles feed primarily on plant material. It has been hypothesized that physiological or microbial limitations may constrain the evolution of herbivory in lizards. Herbivorous lizards exhibit adaptations in digestive morphology and function that allow them to better assimilate plant material. However, it is unknown whether these traits are fixed or perhaps phenotypically flexible as a result of diet. Here, we maintained a naturally omnivorous lizard, Liolaemus ruibali, on a mixed diet of 50% insects and 50% plant material, or a plant-rich diet of 90% plant material. We compared parameters of digestive performance, gut morphology and function, and gut microbial community structure between the two groups. We found that lizards fed the plant-rich diet maintained nitrogen balance and exhibited low minimum nitrogen requirements. Additionally, lizards fed the plant-rich diet exhibited significantly longer small intestines and larger hindguts, demonstrating that gut morphology is phenotypically flexible. Lizards fed the plant-rich diet harbored small intestinal communities that were more diverse and enriched in Melainabacteria and Oscillospira compared with mixed diet-fed lizards. Additionally, the relative abundance of sulfate-reducing bacteria in the small intestine significantly correlated with whole-animal fiber digestibility. Thus, we suggest that physiological and microbial limitations do not sensu stricto constrain the evolution of herbivory in lizards. Rather, ecological context and fitness consequences may be more important in driving the evolution of this feeding strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin D Kohl
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 465 21st Ave South, Nashville, TN 37235, USA Laboratorio de Biología Integrativa, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, San Luis 5700, Argentina Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Chacabuco 917, San Luis 5700, Argentina
| | - Antonio Brun
- Laboratorio de Biología Integrativa, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, San Luis 5700, Argentina Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Chacabuco 917, San Luis 5700, Argentina
| | - Melisa Magallanes
- Laboratorio de Biología Integrativa, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, San Luis 5700, Argentina Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Chacabuco 917, San Luis 5700, Argentina
| | - Joshua Brinkerhoff
- Laboratorio de Biología Integrativa, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, San Luis 5700, Argentina Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Chacabuco 917, San Luis 5700, Argentina
| | - Alejandro Laspiur
- Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, Av. José I. de la Roza 590 Oeste, J5402DCS, San Juan 5400, Argentina
| | - Juan Carlos Acosta
- Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, Av. José I. de la Roza 590 Oeste, J5402DCS, San Juan 5400, Argentina
| | - Seth R Bordenstein
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, 465 21st Ave South, Nashville, TN 37235, USA Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology, Vanderbilt University, 465 21st Ave South, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Enrique Caviedes-Vidal
- Laboratorio de Biología Integrativa, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, San Luis 5700, Argentina Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, Chacabuco 917, San Luis 5700, Argentina
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18
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Wopereis S, Stroeve JHM, Stafleu A, Bakker GCM, Burggraaf J, van Erk MJ, Pellis L, Boessen R, Kardinaal AAF, van Ommen B. Multi-parameter comparison of a standardized mixed meal tolerance test in healthy and type 2 diabetic subjects: the PhenFlex challenge. Genes Nutr 2017; 12:21. [PMID: 28861127 PMCID: PMC5576306 DOI: 10.1186/s12263-017-0570-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 08/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A key feature of metabolic health is the ability to adapt upon dietary perturbations. Recently, it was shown that metabolic challenge tests in combination with the new generation biomarkers allow the simultaneous quantification of major metabolic health processes. Currently, applied challenge tests are largely non-standardized. A systematic review defined an optimal nutritional challenge test, the "PhenFlex test" (PFT). This study aimed to prove that PFT modulates all relevant processes governing metabolic health thereby allowing to distinguish subjects with different metabolic health status. Therefore, 20 healthy and 20 type 2 diabetic (T2D) male subjects were challenged both by PFT and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). During the 8-h response time course, 132 parameters were quantified that report on 26 metabolic processes distributed over 7 organs (gut, liver, adipose, pancreas, vasculature, muscle, kidney) and systemic stress. RESULTS In healthy subjects, 110 of the 132 parameters showed a time course response. Patients with T2D showed 18 parameters to be significantly different after overnight fasting compared to healthy subjects, while 58 parameters were different in the post-challenge time course after the PFT. This demonstrates the added value of PFT in distinguishing subjects with different health status. The OGTT and PFT response was highly comparable for glucose metabolism as identical amounts of glucose were present in both challenge tests. Yet the PFT reports on additional processes, including vasculature, systemic stress, and metabolic flexibility. CONCLUSION The PFT enables the quantification of all relevant metabolic processes involved in maintaining or regaining homeostasis of metabolic health. Studying both healthy subjects and subjects with impaired metabolic health showed that the PFT revealed new processes laying underneath health. This study provides the first evidence towards adopting the PFT as gold standard in nutrition research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzan Wopereis
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | | | - Annette Stafleu
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Marjan J. van Erk
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Linette Pellis
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Ruud Boessen
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | | | - Ben van Ommen
- TNO, Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research, Zeist, The Netherlands
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Zeng LQ, Wang L, Wang GN, Zeng Y, Fu SJ. The relationship between growth performance and metabolic rate flexibility varies with food availability in juvenile qingbo (Spinibarbus sinensis). Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2017; 212:56-63. [PMID: 28723584 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2017.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2017] [Revised: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 07/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Phenotypic flexibility in traits can allow organisms to cope with environmental challenges. However, the ecological consequences (e.g., growth) of SMR flexibility in fish are poorly understood. Juvenile qingbo (Spinibarbus sinensis) were reared individually with two levels of food resources (satiation or limited) with either continuous feeding (CF) or starvation-refeeding (SR). In the CF experiment, SMR increased when individuals were fed either the satiation or limited diets, but no difference was found in average specific growth rate somatic growth (SGR) between the two food availabilities. The relationship between flexibility in SMR and SGR, feeding efficiency (FE) and food intake (FI) was positive in the satiation group but not in the limited food group. In the SR experiment, the initial SMR of individuals was negatively correlated with the SGR during starvation. During refeeding, the starved individuals increased both body mass and SMR under both food availabilities. Individuals with a greater increase in SMR were fed more and also had greater SGR and FE under the satiation diet, but these results were not observed under the limited diet. The average FE under the limited diet was greater than that under the satiation diet, causing there to be no significant difference in final body mass between the diet treatments at the end of refeeding. Our study suggested that SMR flexibility can allow individuals to maximize their potential growth performance in an environment with changing food availability, and the benefits from greater flexibility in SMR could be offset by their maintenance metabolism under environmental stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling-Qing Zeng
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China.
| | - Lei Wang
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Guan-Nan Wang
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Yue Zeng
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
| | - Shi-Jian Fu
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Physiology and Behavior, Colleges of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Animal Biology of Chongqing, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing 401331, China
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20
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Boratyński JS, Jefimow M, Wojciechowski MS. Melatonin attenuates phenotypic flexibility of energy metabolism in a photoresponsive mammal, the Siberian hamster. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:3154-3161. [PMID: 28606897 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.159517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2017] [Accepted: 06/07/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
The duration of melatonin (MEL) secretion conveys information about day length and initiates a cascade of seasonal phenotypic adjustments in photoresponsive mammals. With shortening days, animals cease reproduction, minimize energy expenditure, enhance thermoregulatory capacity and adjust functioning of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to match the winter increase in energy demands. Within each season, stress plays an important role in the flexible adjustments of a phenotype to environmental perturbations. Recent studies have shown that thermal reaction norms of energy metabolism were narrower in winter-acclimated Siberian hamsters, Phodopus sungorus We tested the hypothesis that physiological changes occurring in response to prolonged MEL signals, including changes in the secretion of stress hormones, are responsible for the seasonal decrease in phenotypic flexibility of energy metabolism in photoresponsive mammals. To quantify reaction norms for basal metabolic rate (BMR) and cortisol (CORT) secretion, male Siberian hamsters maintained at a long (16 h:8 h light:dark) photoperiod were acclimated repeatedly for 12 days to 10 and 28°C. As predicted, the phenotypic flexibility of BMR decreased when animals were supplemented with MEL. However, at the same time, mean CORT concentration and the reaction norm for its secretion in response to changes in acclimation temperature increased. These results suggest that decreased sensitivity of HPA axis to CORT signal, rather than changes in CORT level itself, is responsible for the decreased phenotypic flexibility in photoresponsive species. Our results suggest that decreased phenotypic flexibility in winter, together with increased stress hormone secretion, make photosensitive species more vulnerable to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan S Boratyński
- Department of Animal Physiology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, ul. Lwowska 1, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Jefimow
- Department of Animal Physiology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, ul. Lwowska 1, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
| | - Michał S Wojciechowski
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, ul. Lwowska 1, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
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21
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van den Broek TJ, Kremer BHA, Marcondes Rezende M, Hoevenaars FPM, Weber P, Hoeller U, van Ommen B, Wopereis S. The impact of micronutrient status on health: correlation network analysis to understand the role of micronutrients in metabolic-inflammatory processes regulating homeostasis and phenotypic flexibility. Genes Nutr 2017; 12:5. [PMID: 28194237 PMCID: PMC5299688 DOI: 10.1186/s12263-017-0553-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2016] [Accepted: 01/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Background Vitamins and carotenoids are key micronutrients facilitating the maintenance of health, as evidenced by the increased risk of disease with low intake. Optimal phenotypic flexibility, i.e., the ability to respond to a physiological challenge, is an essential indicator of health status. Therefore, health can be measured by applying a challenge test and monitoring the response of relevant phenotypic processes. In this study, we assessed the correlation of three fat-soluble vitamins, (i.e., vitamin A or retinol, vitamin D3, two homologues of vitamin E) and four carotenoids (i.e., α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, and lycopene), with characteristics of metabolic and inflammatory parameters at baseline and in response to a nutritional challenge test (NCT) in a group of 36 overweight and obese male subjects, using proteomics and metabolomics platforms. The phenotypic flexibility concept implies that health can be measured by the ability to adapt to a NCT, which may offer a more sensitive way to assess changes in health status of healthy subjects. Results Correlation analyses of results after overnight fasting revealed a rather evenly distributed network in a number of relatively strong correlations per micronutrient, with minor overlap between correlation profiles of each compound. Correlation analyses of challenge response profiles for metabolite and protein parameters with micronutrient status revealed a network that is more skewed towards α-carotene and γ-tocopherol suggesting a more prominent role for these micronutrients in the maintenance of phenotypic flexibility. Comparison of the networks revealed that there is merely overlap of two parameters (inositol and oleic acid (C18:1)) affirming that there is a specific biomarker response profile upon NCT. Conclusions Our study shows that applying the challenge test concept is able to reveal previously unidentified correlations between specific micronutrients and health-related processes, with potential relevance for maintenance of health that were not observed by correlating homeostatic measurements. This approach will contribute to insights on the influence of micronutrients on health and help to create efficient micronutrient intervention programs. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12263-017-0553-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim J van den Broek
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Bas H A Kremer
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Marisa Marcondes Rezende
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Femke P M Hoevenaars
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Peter Weber
- DSM Nutritional Products, Analytical Research Centre and Human Nutrition and Health Department, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Ulrich Hoeller
- DSM Nutritional Products, Analytical Research Centre and Human Nutrition and Health Department, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Ben van Ommen
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
| | - Suzan Wopereis
- Netherlands Institute for Applied Science (TNO), Research Group Microbiology & Systems Biology, Zeist, The Netherlands
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Brunt EM, Turko AJ, Scott GR, Wright PA. Amphibious fish jump better on land after acclimation to a terrestrial environment. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 219:3204-3207. [PMID: 27591317 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.140970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2016] [Accepted: 08/14/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Air and water differ dramatically in density and viscosity, posing different biomechanical challenges for animal locomotion. We asked how terrestrial acclimation influences locomotion in amphibious fish, specifically testing the hypothesis that terrestrial tail flip performance is improved by plastic changes in the skeletal muscle. Mangrove rivulus Kryptolebias marmoratus, which remain largely inactive out of water, were exposed to water or air for 14 days and a subgroup of air-exposed fish was also recovered in water. Tail flip jumping performance on land improved dramatically in air-acclimated fish, they had lower lactate levels compared with control fish, and these effects were mostly reversible. Muscle plasticity significantly increased oxidative muscle cross-sectional area and fibre size, as well as the number of capillaries per fibre. Our results show that reversible changes to the oxidative skeletal muscle of K. marmoratus out of water enhance terrestrial locomotory performance, even in the absence of exercise training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily M Brunt
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada N1G2W1
| | - Andy J Turko
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada N1G2W1
| | - Graham R Scott
- Department of Biology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada L8S4K1
| | - Patricia A Wright
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada N1G2W1
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Auer SK, Salin K, Anderson GJ, Metcalfe NB. Flexibility in metabolic rate and activity level determines individual variation in overwinter performance. Oecologia 2016; 182:703-12. [PMID: 27461377 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-016-3697-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2016] [Accepted: 07/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Energy stores are essential for the overwinter survival of many temperate and polar animals, but individuals within a species often differ in how quickly they deplete their reserves. These disparities in overwinter performance may be explained by differences in their physiological and behavioral flexibility in response to food scarcity. However, little is known about whether individuals exhibit correlated or independent changes in these traits, and how these phenotypic changes collectively affect their winter energy use. We examined individual flexibility in both standard metabolic rate and activity level in response to food scarcity and their combined consequences for depletion of lipid stores among overwintering brown trout (Salmo trutta). Metabolism and activity tended to decrease, yet individuals exhibited striking differences in their physiological and behavioral flexibility. The rate of lipid depletion was negatively related to decreases in both metabolic and activity rates, with the smallest lipid loss over the simulated winter period occurring in individuals that had the greatest reductions in metabolism and/or activity. However, changes in metabolism and activity were negatively correlated; those individuals that decreased their SMR to a greater extent tended to increase their activity rates, and vice versa, suggesting among-individual variation in strategies for coping with food scarcity.
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Leon-Acuña A, Alcala-Diaz JF, Delgado-Lista J, Torres-Peña JD, Lopez-Moreno J, Camargo A, Garcia-Rios A, Marin C, Gomez-Delgado F, Caballero J, Van-Ommen B, Malagon MM, Perez-Martinez P, Lopez-Miranda J. Hepatic insulin resistance both in prediabetic and diabetic patients determines postprandial lipoprotein metabolism: from the CORDIOPREV study. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2016; 15:68. [PMID: 27095446 DOI: 10.1186/s12933-016-0380-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 03/30/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background/aims Previous evidences have shown the presence of a prolonged and exaggerated postprandial response in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its relation with an increase of cardiovascular risk. However, the response in prediabetes population has not been established. The objective was to analyze the degree of postprandial lipemia response in the CORDIOPREV clinical trial (NCT00924937) according to the diabetic status. Methods 1002 patients were submitted to an oral fat load test meal (OFTT) with 0.7 g fat/kg body weight [12 % saturated fatty acids (SFA), 10 % polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), 43 % monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), 10 % protein and 25 % carbohydrates]. Serial blood test analyzing lipid fractions were drawn at 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 h during postprandial state. Postprandial triglycerides (TG) concentration at any point >2.5 mmol/L (220 mg/dL) has been established as undesirable response. We explored the dynamic response in 57 non-diabetic, 364 prediabetic and 581 type 2 diabetic patients. Additionally, the postprandial response was evaluated according to basal insulin resistance subgroups in patients non-diabetic and diabetic without pharmacological treatment (N = 642). Results Prevalence of undesirable postprandial TG was 35 % in non-diabetic, 48 % in prediabetic and 59 % in diabetic subgroup, respectively (p < 0.001). Interestingly, prediabetic patients displayed higher plasma TG and large triacylglycerol-rich lipoproteins (TRLs-TG) postprandial response compared with those non-diabetic patients (p < 0.001 and p = 0.003 respectively). Moreover, the area under the curve (AUC) of TG and AUC of TRLs-TG was greater in the prediabetic group compared with non-diabetic patients (p < 0.001 and p < 0.005 respectively). Patients with liver insulin resistance (liver-IR) showed higher postprandial response of TG compared with those patients with muscle-IR or without any insulin-resistance respectively (p < 0.001). Conclusions Our findings demonstrate that prediabetic patients show a lower phenotypic flexibility after external aggression, such as OFTT compared with nondiabetic patients. The postprandial response increases progressively according to non-diabetic, prediabetic and type 2 diabetic state and it is higher in patients with liver insulin-resistance. To identify this subgroup of patients is important to treat more intensively in order to avoid future cardiometabolic complications.
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Boratyński JS, Jefimow M, Wojciechowski MS. Phenotypic flexibility of energetics in acclimated Siberian hamsters has a narrower scope in winter than in summer. J Comp Physiol B 2016; 186:387-402. [PMID: 26803319 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-016-0959-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2015] [Revised: 12/22/2015] [Accepted: 01/01/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
As photoperiod shortens with the approach of winter, small mammals should reduce their energy expenditure to survive periods of food limitation. However, within seasons, animals should balance their energy budgets as abiotic conditions change, sometimes unpredictably; cold spells should increase heat production, while warm spells should do the opposite. Therefore, we addressed specific questions about the possible interactions between seasonal acclimatization and the intra-seasonal phenotypic flexibility of metabolic rate. We hypothesized that phenotypic flexibility in small mammals differs seasonally and is greater in summer than in winter, and predicted that seasonal adjustments in energetics, which are driven by photoperiod, overwhelm the influence of variations in the thermal environment. We measured body mass, basal metabolic rate (BMR), facultative non-shivering thermogenesis (fNST), body temperature, and calculated minimum thermal conductance in Siberian hamsters Phodopus sungorus. Animals were acclimated to winter-like, and then to summer-like conditions and, within each season, were exposed twice, for 3 weeks to 10, 20 or 28 °C. We used differences between values measured after these short acclimation periods as a measure of the scope of phenotypic flexibility. After winter acclimation, hamsters were lighter, had lower whole animal BMR, higher fNST than in summer, and developed heterothermy. After these short acclimations to the above-mentioned temperatures, hamsters showed reversible changes in BMR and fNST; however, these traits were less flexible in winter than in summer. We conclude that seasonal acclimation affects hamster responses to intra-seasonal variations in the thermal environment. We argue that understanding seasonal changes in phenotypic flexibility is crucial for predicting the biological consequences of global climate changes.
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Zhang Y, Carter T, Eyster K, Swanson DL. Acute cold and exercise training up-regulate similar aspects of fatty acid transport and catabolism in house sparrows (Passer domesticus). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 218:3885-93. [PMID: 26486368 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.126128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2015] [Accepted: 10/08/2015] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Summit maximum thermoregulatory metabolic rate (Msum) and maximum exercise metabolic rate (MMR) both increase in response to acute cold or exercise training in birds. Because lipids are the main fuel supporting both thermogenesis and exercise in birds, adjustments to lipid transport and catabolic capacities may support elevated energy demands from cold and exercise training. To examine a potential mechanistic role for lipid transport and catabolism in organismal cross-training effects (exercise effects on both exercise and thermogenesis, and vice versa), we measured enzyme activities and mRNA and protein expression in pectoralis muscle for several key steps of lipid transport and catabolism pathways in house sparrows (Passer domesticus) during acute exercise and cold training. Both training protocols elevated pectoralis protein levels of fatty acid translocase (FAT/CD36), cytosolic fatty acid-binding protein, and citrate synthase (CS) activity. However, mRNA expression of FAT/CD36 and both mRNA and protein expression of plasma membrane fatty acid-binding protein did not change for either training group. CS activities in supracoracoideus, leg and heart, and carnitine palmitoyl transferase (CPT) and β-hydroxyacyl CoA-dehydrogenase activities in all muscles did not vary significantly with either training protocol. Both Msum and MMR were significantly positively correlated with CPT and CS activities. These data suggest that up-regulation of trans-sarcolemmal and intramyocyte lipid transport capacities and cellular metabolic intensities, along with previously documented increases in body and pectoralis muscle masses and pectoralis myostatin (a muscle growth inhibitor) levels, are common mechanisms underlying the training effects of both exercise and shivering in birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yufeng Zhang
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
| | - Travis Carter
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
| | - Kathleen Eyster
- Basic Biomedical Sciences, Sanford School of Medicine, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57105, USA
| | - David L Swanson
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
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Zhang Y, Eyster K, Liu JS, Swanson DL. Cross-training in birds: cold and exercise training produce similar changes in maximal metabolic output, muscle masses and myostatin expression in house sparrows (Passer domesticus). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 218:2190-200. [PMID: 25987736 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.121822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2015] [Accepted: 05/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Maximal metabolic outputs for exercise and thermogenesis in birds presumably influence fitness through effects on flight and shivering performance. Because both summit (Msum, maximum thermoregulatory metabolic rate) and maximum (MMR, maximum exercise metabolic rate) metabolic rates are functions of skeletal muscle activity, correlations between these measurements and their mechanistic underpinnings might occur. To examine whether such correlations occur, we measured the effects of experimental cold and exercise training protocols for 3 weeks on body (Mb) and muscle (Mpec) masses, basal metabolic rate (BMR), Msum, MMR, pectoralis mRNA and protein expression for myostatin, and mRNA expression of TLL-1 and TLL-2 (metalloproteinase activators of myostatin) in house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Both training protocols increased Msum, MMR, Mb and Mpec, but BMR increased with cold training and decreased with exercise training. No significant differences occurred for pectoralis myostatin mRNA expression, but cold and exercise increased the expression of TLL-1 and TLL-2. Pectoralis myostatin protein levels were generally reduced for both training groups. These data clearly demonstrate cross-training effects of cold and exercise in birds, and are consistent with a role for myostatin in increasing pectoralis muscle mass and driving organismal increases in metabolic capacities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yufeng Zhang
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
| | - Kathleen Eyster
- Basic Biomedical Sciences, Sanford School of Medicine, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57105, USA
| | - Jin-Song Liu
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - David L Swanson
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
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Liknes ET, Guglielmo CG, Swanson DL. Phenotypic flexibility in passerine birds: seasonal variation in fuel storage, mobilization and transport. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2014; 174:1-10. [PMID: 24704472 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2014.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2014] [Revised: 03/26/2014] [Accepted: 03/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Winter acclimatization in small birds living in cold climates produces a winter phenotype characterized by upregulation of metabolic rates to meet enhanced thermoregulatory demands. We measured several key aspects of fuel storage, mobilization and transport in summer and winter to determine whether black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus), white-breasted nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis), and house sparrows (Passer domesticus) seasonally modulate these attributes to meet enhanced winter thermoregulatory demands. In addition, we exposed birds to thermoneutral (control) and severe cold exposure treatments to determine whether acute cold exposure influenced fuel storage, mobilization or transport. Carcass lipid mass and pectoralis intramuscular lipid did not vary significantly between seasons or temperature treatments for any of the study species. Muscle glycogen varied significantly seasonally only for chickadee supracoracoideus and leg muscles, and did not vary among warm or cold treatments for any species. Pectoralis fatty acid binding protein (FABPc) was significantly elevated in winter for chickadees and nuthatches, but not for sparrows. Plasma metabolites showed little consistent variation in response to season or acute cold exposure. Thus, fuel storage and mobilization do not appear to be major targets of adjustment associated with seasonal metabolic flexibility in these species, but modulation of intracellular lipid transport by FABPc may be an important contributor to seasonal phenotypes in some species of small birds.
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Love OP, Madliger CL, Bourgeon S, Semeniuk CAD, Williams TD. Evidence for baseline glucocorticoids as mediators of reproductive investment in a wild bird. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 199:65-9. [PMID: 24462764 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2014.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2013] [Revised: 11/22/2013] [Accepted: 01/08/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Determining the mechanisms that mediate investment decisions between current and future reproductive attempts is still a key goal of life-history studies. Since baseline levels of stress hormones (glucocorticoids - GCs) act as predictive and labile regulators of daily energetic balance in vertebrates they remain excellent candidates for mediating investment decisions both within and across reproductive attempts. Using free-living female European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) we experimentally reduced investment in current reproduction (number of offspring raised in the first brood) to examine whether baseline corticosterone (CORT) acted as a hormonal mediator preparing individuals for a predictable increase in future investment (number of offspring raised in the second brood). Although treatment and control birds raised the same total amount of offspring across two broods, the experimental birds increased reproductive investment in second broods to compensate for the reduced investment in the first brood. Data on both mean and intra-individual changes in baseline CORT support the idea that an increase in baseline CORT between the incubation stages in treatment birds strongly predicted this increase in investment. Importantly, we measured the increase in baseline CORT during late incubation prior to the increase in energetic demand associated with increased reproductive investment in offspring, indicating that flexible within-individual changes in baseline GCs can act as a labile mechanism preparing individuals for predictable increases in reproductive investment. As such, our experimental results indicate that elevated baseline GCs can prepare individuals for investment in energetically expensive life-history stages, rather than simply being elevated as a consequence of increased effort or demand. This suggests that short-term preparative increases in baseline GCs benefit individuals by successfully allowing them to maximize fitness under varying environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver P Love
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON, Canada.
| | | | - Sophie Bourgeon
- Norwegian Polar Institute, The Polar Environmental Center, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Christina A D Semeniuk
- Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON, Canada
| | - Tony D Williams
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
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Versteegh MA, Helm B, Kleynhans EJ, Gwinner E, Tieleman BI. Genetic and phenotypically flexible components of seasonal variation in immune function. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 217:1510-8. [PMID: 24436383 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.097105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Animals cope with seasonal variation in environmental factors by adjustments of physiology and life history. When seasonal variation is partly predictable, such adjustments can be based on a genetic component or be phenotypically flexible. Animals have to allocate limited resources over different demands, including immune function. Accordingly, immune traits could change seasonally, and such changes could have a genetic component that differs between environments. We tested this hypothesis in genotypically distinct groups of a widespread songbird, the stonechat (Saxicola torquata). We compared variation in immunity during 1 year in long-distance migrants, short-distance migrants, tropical residents and hybrids in a common garden environment. Additionally, we investigated phenotypically flexible responses to temperature by applying different temperature regimes to one group. We assessed constitutive immunity by measuring hemagglutination, hemolysis, haptoglobin and bactericidal ability against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Genotypic groups differed in patterns of variation of all measured immune indices except haptoglobin. Hybrids differed from, but were rarely intermediate to, parental subspecies. Temperature treatment only influenced patterns of hemolysis and bactericidal ability against E. coli. We conclude that seasonal variation in constitutive immunity has a genetic component, that heredity does not follow simple Mendelian rules, and that some immune measures are relatively rigid while others are more flexible. Furthermore, our results support the idea that seasonal variability in constitutive immunity is associated with variability in environment and annual-cycle demands. This study stresses the importance of considering seasonal variation in immune function in relation to the ecology and life history of the organism of interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Versteegh
- Animal Ecology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC, Groningen, The Netherlands
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