The association between infrared thermal imagery of core eye temperature, personality, age and housing in cats

Understanding individual responses to stress is a key aspect of maintaining optimal animal welfare. This is especially important where animals are being kept in sub-optimal environments or where the species may not clearly demonstrate stress. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate how stress varies in cats in a cattery environment in association with personality, age and housing. Stress was measured using Infrared Thermal Imaging (IRT) of core eye temperature and compared with scores from the Feline Temperament Profile (FTP), age and single or group housing (n=34). It was predicted that higher eye temperature would be inversely correlated with acceptable scores and directly correlated with questionable scores calculated from the FTP as these are suggested to indicate a stress sensitive cat. As predicted, eye temperature correlated significantly with acceptable FTP scores (rs = -0.377, p = 0.028). Eye temperature was also higher in older cats (rs = 0.417, p = 0.014) and those singly-housed compared with group housed (U = 37, N1 = 12, N2 = 22, P = 0.001). This provides preliminary evidence that personality may predict stress sensitivity in cats and that older and singly housed cats may find the cattery environment more aversive. These findings may improve adoption rates as unresolved stress can cause avoidance and aggressive behaviour, both of which are undesirable in companion animals. Further, they may increase adoption success rates if owners have more knowledge of the personality and likely stress sensitivity of the cat before adopting. In addition, educating owners that the cat they have adopted is stress sensitive will encourage greater vigilance and awareness of subtle indicators of stress, thus improving welfare

Dually noted: the effects of a pressure headcollar on compliance, discomfort and stress in horses during handling

Horse handlers often encounter problem behaviour resulting from a lack of stimulus control. Handlers are often only 15% of the weight of horses, which evolved strong flight responses. Therefore, many riders and handlers resort to the use of "aids" to maintain control of their animals. However, there are increasing concerns about the efficacy and welfare implication of such devices, particularly when applied to sensitive facial structures. One such device is a Dually® headcollar which aims to increase compliance. Despite its popularity, little is known about the effects of this aid on behaviour or stress. The aim of the current study was to determine whether the use of a Dually headcollar improves compliance during handling and, if so, whether this might be achieved with concomitant increases in stress or discomfort. Subjects completed two novel handling tests, one wearing a Dually with a line attached to the pressure mechanism and one attached to the standard ring as a Control. Crossing time and proactive behaviour were recorded as indicators of compliance. Core temperature and the discrepancy between eye temperatures were measured using IRT before and after testing as an indicator of stress. The Horse Grimace Scale (HGS) was used to measure discomfort caused by each configuration of the device. The Dually did not result in more compliant behaviour, compared to the Control (p=0.935; p=0.538). However, the Dually configuration did result in a significantly higher HGS scores (p=0.034). This may indicate that there is an impact on animal welfare by using this device that is not justified by improved behaviour. However, IRT readings of core temperature (p=0.186) and discrepancy between the eyes (p=0.972) did not indicate the Dually increased stress in subjects. Taken together, this suggests the Dually is ineffective in naïve horses but causes increased discomfort

Zylkéne to load? The effects of alpha-casozepine on compliance and coping in horses during loading

Horses are routinely transported for access to safe off-road riding, veterinary care, breeding, sale or moving to a new home environment. However, transport is a known stressor in horses. For this reason, problem behavior when loading is a commonly reported issue which presents risks to handlers and horse welfare. Existing literature and manufacturers recommendations suggests that alpha-casozepine may be effective in improving the behavior and welfare of horses during loading onto a vehicle for transport. The current paper aims to assess the behavioral and physiological effects of a commercially available alpha-casozepine feed supplement (Zylkéne Equine) in horses during loading and confinement on a transport lorry. Subjects (n = 10) were loaded once with the supplement and once without, in a balanced random order with each subject acted as their own control. The handler was blind to treatment. Time to load onto the lorry, and movement of feet, licking and chewing, and vocalising within the lorry, were recorded as behavioral indicators of compliance and coping. Heart rate, heart rate variability, salivary cortisol, and infrared thermography of both core temperature and the discrepancy between eyes, were measured as indicators of arousal. There were no significant differences in physiology between Treatment and Control (P > 0.05). Treatment resulted in a significantly shorter Loading Time than control (P = 0.04), however, the actual difference in median time was only 0.45 seconds. No other behavioral indicator differed between Treatment and Control (P > 0.05). Power analysis revealed the sample was sufficient to detect a significant effect. Where modest effects were observed for a small number of variables, Treatment effect contradicted predictions. Taken together, this indicates that alpha-casozepine does not affect a horse’s ability to cope with loading and confinement in a horse lorry. Further work is required to ascertain whether the maximum dosage – twice that used here – might affect coping and behavior in horses

Wolbachia in the flesh: symbiont intensities in germ-line and somatic tissues challenge the conventional view of Wolbachia transmission routes

Symbionts can substantially affect the evolution and ecology of their hosts. The investigation of the tissue-specific distribution of symbionts (tissue tropism) can provide important insight into host-symbiont interactions. Among other things, it can help to discern the importance of specific transmission routes and potential phenotypic effects. The intracellular bacterial symbiont Wolbachia has been described as the greatest ever panzootic, due to the wide array of arthropods that it infects. Being primarily vertically transmitted, it is expected that the transmission of Wolbachia would be enhanced by focusing infection in the reproductive tissues. In social insect hosts, this tropism would logically extend to reproductive rather than sterile castes, since the latter constitute a dead-end for vertically transmission. Here, we show that Wolbachia are not focused on reproductive tissues of eusocial insects, and that non-reproductive tissues of queens and workers of the ant Acromyrmex echinatior, harbour substantial infections. In particular, the comparatively high intensities of Wolbachia in the haemolymph, fat body, and faeces, suggest potential for horizontal transmission via parasitoids and the faecal-oral route, or a role for Wolbachia modulating the immune response of this host. It may be that somatic tissues and castes are not the evolutionary dead-end for Wolbachia that is commonly thought

Exploiting inflammation for therapeutic gain in pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive malignancy associated with <5% 5-year survival, in which standard chemotherapeutics have limited benefit. The disease is associated with significant intra- and peritumoral inflammation and failure of protective immunosurveillance. Indeed, inflammatory signals are implicated in both tumour initiation and tumour progression. The major pathways regulating PDAC-associated inflammation are now being explored. Activation of leukocytes, and upregulation of cytokine and chemokine signalling pathways, both have been shown to modulate PDAC progression. Therefore, targeting inflammatory pathways may be of benefit as part of a multi-target approach to PDAC therapy. This review explores the pathways known to modulate inflammation at different stages of tumour development, drawing conclusions on their potential as therapeutic targets in PDAC

Dually investigated: the effect of a pressure headcollar on the behaviour, discomfort and stress of trained horses

The Dually™ is a control headcollar designed to improve equine behaviour during handling challenges by applying greater pressure than a standard headcollar. Previous research indicated it did not improve compliance in naïve horses but did result in higher Horse Grimace Scale scores (HGS) indicative of discomfort. However, subjects had not been trained to step forward to release the pressure applied by the headcollar. The current study aimed to determine the effect of training on behaviour and physiology of horses wearing the Dually™ headcollar during handling challenges. To this end, subjects received three training sessions prior to completing two handling tests in which they crossed distinct novel obstacles, one wearing a Dually™ with a line attached to the pressure mechanism and one attached to the standard ring as a control. Behaviour was coded by hypothesis blind researchers: time to cross the obstacle and proactive refusal (moving away from the obstacle) were recorded as indicators of compliance and the Horse Grimace Scale was used to measure discomfort caused by each configuration of the device. Infrared thermography of ocular temperature, heart rate variability (RMSSD and low/high frequency ratios (LF/HF)) and salivary cortisol were measured as indicators of arousal. Data from the previous study on Naïve horses was also included to compare responses to the Dually in Naïve and Trained horses. Training resulted in a decrease in RMSSD (p = 0.002) and an increase in LF/HF (p=0.012), compared to rest, indicating arousal. As per the original study, horses did not complete the tests more quickly in the Dually, compared to control (p=0.698). Trained horses from this study tended to be more proactive in the Dually compared to Controls (p=0.066) and significantly more so than Naïve horses from the previous study (p=0.002) suggesting that behaviour becomes less desirable during early Dually training. Yet, stress and HGS indicators were not higher in the Dually compared to Control during testing. Results suggest the Dually has a negative effect on behaviour but not on stress or discomfort during short handling challenges. Further research is warranted to determine the long-term effect of Dually experience on behaviour and welfare

The Sonoda–Tajima Cell Collection: A Human Genetics Research Resource with Emphasis on South American Indigenous Populations

The Sonoda–Tajima Cell Collection includes cell samples obtained from a range of ethnic minority groups across the world but in particular from South America. The collection is made all the more valuable by the fact that some of these ethnic populations have since died out, and thus it will be impossible to prepare a similar cell collection again. The collection was donated to our institute, a public cell bank in Japan, by Drs Sonoda and Tajima to make it available to researchers throughout the world. The original cell collection was composed of cryopreserved peripheral blood samples that would obviously have been rapidly exhausted if used directly. We, therefore, immortalized some samples with the Epstein–Barr virus and established B-lymphoblastoid cell lines (B-LCLs). As there is continuing controversy over whether the B-LCL genome is stably maintained, we performed an array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) analysis to confirm the genomic stability of the cell lines. The array CGH analysis of the B-LCL lines and their parental B cells demonstrated that genomic stability was maintained in the long-term cell cultures. The B-LCLs of the Sonoda–Tajima Collection will therefore be made available to interested scientists around the world. At present, 512 B-LCLs have been developed, and we are willing to increase the number if there is sufficient demand

Stomatin Inhibits Pannexin-1-Mediated Whole-Cell Currents by Interacting with Its Carboxyl Terminal

The pannexin-1 (Panx1) channel (often referred to as the Panx1 hemichannel) is a large-conductance channel in the plasma membrane of many mammalian cells. While opening of the channel is potentially detrimental to the cell, little is known about how it is regulated under physiological conditions. Here we show that stomatin inhibited Panx1 channel activity. In transfected HEK-293 cells, stomatin reduced Panx1-mediated whole-cell currents without altering either the total or membrane surface Panx1 protein expression. Stomatin coimmunoprecipitated with full-length Panx1 as well as a Panx1 fragment containing the fourth membrane-spanning domain and the cytosolic carboxyl terminal. The inhibitory effect of stomatin on Panx1-mediated whole-cell currents was abolished by truncating Panx1 at a site in the cytosolic carboxyl terminal. In primary culture of mouse astrocytes, inhibition of endogenous stomatin expression by small interfering RNA enhanced Panx1-mediated outward whole-cell currents. These observations suggest that stomatin may play important roles in astrocytes and other cells by interacting with Panx1 carboxyl terminal to limit channel opening

The Anti-Tumor Effect of HDAC Inhibition in a Human Pancreas Cancer Model Is Significantly Improved by the Simultaneous Inhibition of Cyclooxygenase 2

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is the fourth leading cause of cancer death worldwide, with no satisfactory treatment to date. In this study, we tested whether the combined inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and class I histone deacetylase (HDAC) may results in a better control of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The impact of the concomitant HDAC and COX-2 inhibition on cell growth, apoptosis and cell cycle was assessed first in vitro on human pancreas BxPC-3, PANC-1 or CFPAC-1 cells treated with chemical inhibitors (SAHA, MS-275 and celecoxib) or HDAC1/2/3/7 siRNA. To test the potential antitumoral activity of this combination in vivo, we have developed and characterized, a refined chick chorioallantoic membrane tumor model that histologically and proteomically mimics human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The combination of HDAC1/3 and COX-2 inhibition significantly impaired proliferation of BxPC-3 cells in vitro and stalled entirely the BxPC-3 cells tumor growth onto the chorioallantoic membrane in vivo. The combination was more effective than either drug used alone. Consistently, we showed that both HDAC1 and HDAC3 inhibition induced the expression of COX-2 via the NF-kB pathway. Our data demonstrate, for the first time in a Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) model, a significant action of HDAC and COX-2 inhibitors on cancer cell growth, which sets the basis for the development of potentially effective new combinatory therapies for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma patients.Peer reviewe