Road transport is known to be a stressful animal husbandry procedure as it induces the activation of two main physiological stress-related pathways: the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis and the sympathetic-adrenal medulla axis. This preliminary study aimed to investigate whether salivary chromogranin A (CgA) concentration, known as a biomarker of the sympathetic activity system during psychological stress, may represent a novel physiological index of transportation-induced stress in donkeys. Nineteen Romagnolo donkeys, raised in groups on paddocks, were subject to two transportations, following the farm's routine procedures, for a mean duration of 64 min each on two consecutive days. Salivary samples were gently collected 15 min before and 15 min after each transportation. Salivary CgA was measured by a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test. Results showed that CgA salivary levels significantly decreased after both transportations. The physiological mechanisms underlying this result may be related to catestatin activity, a bioactive product of the proteolytic cleavage of CgA, that acts as an inhibitor of catecholamine release. This hypothesis requires further investigation, particularly considering the limited number of subjects involved in this preliminary study. The identification of a reliable and non-invasive stress-marker would represent a useful tool for improving farm animals' welfare in transport conditions.

May Salivary Chromogranin A Act as a Physiological Index of Stress in Transported Donkeys? A Pilot Study / F. Dai, E. Dalla Costa, S. Cannas, E.U.L. Heinzl, M. Minero, S.M. Mazzola. - In: ANIMALS. - ISSN 2076-2615. - 10:6(2020 Jun 03). [10.3390/ani10060972]

May Salivary Chromogranin A Act as a Physiological Index of Stress in Transported Donkeys? A Pilot Study

F. Dai
Primo
;
E. Dalla Costa
Secondo
;
S. Cannas;E.U.L. Heinzl;M. Minero
Penultimo
;
S.M. Mazzola
Ultimo
2020

Abstract

Road transport is known to be a stressful animal husbandry procedure as it induces the activation of two main physiological stress-related pathways: the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis and the sympathetic-adrenal medulla axis. This preliminary study aimed to investigate whether salivary chromogranin A (CgA) concentration, known as a biomarker of the sympathetic activity system during psychological stress, may represent a novel physiological index of transportation-induced stress in donkeys. Nineteen Romagnolo donkeys, raised in groups on paddocks, were subject to two transportations, following the farm's routine procedures, for a mean duration of 64 min each on two consecutive days. Salivary samples were gently collected 15 min before and 15 min after each transportation. Salivary CgA was measured by a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test. Results showed that CgA salivary levels significantly decreased after both transportations. The physiological mechanisms underlying this result may be related to catestatin activity, a bioactive product of the proteolytic cleavage of CgA, that acts as an inhibitor of catecholamine release. This hypothesis requires further investigation, particularly considering the limited number of subjects involved in this preliminary study. The identification of a reliable and non-invasive stress-marker would represent a useful tool for improving farm animals' welfare in transport conditions.
chromogranin A; donkeys; stress; transport; welfare
Settore AGR/19 - Zootecnica Speciale
Settore VET/02 - Fisiologia Veterinaria
3-giu-2020
Article (author)
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/738631
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