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. 2021 Nov 18;11(1):22527.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-01889-w.

Characterizing the postnatal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response of in utero heat stressed pigs at 10 and 15 weeks of age

Jacob M Maskal  1 , Luiz F Brito  1 , Alan W Duttlinger  1 , Kouassi R Kpodo  1 , Betty R McConn  2 , Christopher J Byrd  1 , Brian T Richert  1 , Jeremy N Marchant  3 , Donald C Lay Jr  3 , Shelbi D Perry  4 , Matthew C Lucy  4 , Tim J Safranski  4 , Jay S Johnson  5
Affiliations

Characterizing the postnatal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response of in utero heat stressed pigs at 10 and 15 weeks of age

Jacob M Maskal et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

In utero heat stress alters postnatal physiological and behavioral stress responses in pigs. However, the mechanisms underlying these alterations have not been determined. The study objective was to characterize the postnatal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response of in utero heat-stressed pigs. Pigs were subjected to a dexamethasone suppression test followed by a corticotrophin releasing hormone challenge at 10 and 15 weeks of age. Following the challenge, hypothalamic, pituitary, and adrenal tissues were collected from all pigs for mRNA abundance analyses. At 10 weeks of age, in utero heat-stressed pigs had a reduced (P < 0.05) cortisol response to the corticotrophin releasing hormone challenge versus controls. Additionally, the cortisol response tended to be greater overall (P < 0.10) in 15 versus 10-week-old pigs in response to the dexamethasone suppression test. The cortisol response tended to be reduced overall (P < 0.10) in 15 versus 10-week-old pigs in response to the corticotrophin releasing hormone challenge. Hypothalamic corticotropin releasing hormone mRNA abundance tended to be greater (P < 0.10) in in utero heat-stressed versus control pigs at 15-weeks of age. In summary, in utero heat stress altered some aspects of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis related to corticotropin releasing hormone signaling, and age influenced this response.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of in utero heat stress (IUHS; n = 12 pigs per age category) or in utero thermoneutral (IUTN; n = 12 pigs per age category) conditions on the postnatal ∆ cortisol response of pigs following a dexamethasone (DEX) suppression test and a corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) challenge at 10 weeks and 15 weeks of age. Letters (a, b) indicate in utero treatment by age differences (P = 0.02). Symbols (*, #) indicate overall age statistical trends (0.05 < P ≤ 0.01). Data are presented as LSmeans ± SE.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effects of age [10 weeks (n = 24 pigs) and 15 weeks (n = 24 pigs)] on the mRNA abundance of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) in the hypothalamus of pigs. Data are presented as LSmeans ± SE.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of age [10 weeks (n = 24 pigs) and 15 weeks (n = 24 pigs)] on the mRNA abundance of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) in the anterior pituitary of pigs. Data are presented as LSmeans ± SE.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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