The influence of heat load on Merino sheep. 3. Cytokine and biochemistry profiles
A. M. Lees
A B E , G. Wijffels C , R. McCulloch C , S. Stockwell C , H. Owen D , M. L. Sullivan A , J. C. W. Olm D , A. J. Cawdell-Smith A and J. B. Gaughan A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Animal Science Group, The University of Queensland, Gatton, Qld 4343, Australia.
B Present address: School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2350, Australia.
C CSIRO Agriculture and Food, Queensland Bioscience Precinct, St Lucia, Qld 4072, Australia.
D School of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Queensland, Gatton, Qld 4343, Australia.
E Corresponding author. Email: a.lees@uqconnect.edu.au
Animal Production Science 60(16) 1940-1948 https://doi.org/10.1071/AN19689
Submitted: 30 November 2019 Accepted: 15 June 2020 Published: 27 July 2020
Abstract
Context: Approximately 2 million sheep are exported from Australia on live export voyages annually. As voyages travel from a southern hemisphere winter to a northern hemisphere summer, production and welfare issues associated with excessive heat load may arise.
Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the responses of sheep to incremental heat load under simulated live export conditions, specifically the influence of heat load on the metabolic and inflammatory status of sheep.
Methods: A total of 144 Merino wethers (44.02 ± 0.32 kg) were used in a 29-day climate controlled study using two cohorts of 72 sheep (n = 2), exposed to two treatments: (1) thermoneutral, and (2) hot. Sheep in the hot treatment were exposed to heat load simulated from live export voyages from Australia to the Middle East. Blood samples were collected from all sheep (n = 144) on Day 1, then at 7-day intervals (n = 5) for the duration of each 29-day period. Blood samples were analysed to determine the cytokine, biochemistry and haematology (data not presented here) profiles. Cytokine and biochemical profiles were analysed using a repeated measures model assuming a compound symmetry covariance. The model fitted included terms for cohort and treatment (hot, thermoneutral), and a term for sample collection day (day) and a treatment × day interaction. The subject factor corresponded to the cohort × treatment combinations.
Key results: There were no consistent trends in plasma cytokine and biochemical profiles. Bicarbonate was the only parameter that was influenced by cohort (P = 0.0035), treatment (P = 0.0025), collection (P = 0.0001) and treatment × collection (P = 0.0025). Furthermore, interleukin-6 and glutamate dehydrogenase were the only parameters that were not influenced by cohort (P > 0.295), treatment (P = 0.2567), collection (P > 0.06) or treatment × collection (P = 0.34).
Conclusions: Overall, these data highlight that the metabolic and inflammatory status of sheep exposed to incremental heat load, during a simulated live export voyage from a southern hemisphere winter to a northern hemisphere summer, were not markedly altered.
Implications: These results provide a preliminary evaluation of the inflammatory and metabolic status of sheep on arrival in the Middle East.
Additional keywords: biochemistry, cytokines, electrolytes, haematology, metabolism, histopathology.
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