Open AccessNatural variations in the stress and acute phase responses of cattle
Author(s) -
H. D. Hughes,
J.A. Carroll,
Nicole C Burdick Sanchez,
J. T. Richeson
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
innate immunity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.921
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1753-4267
pISSN - 1753-4259
DOI - 10.1177/1753425913508993
Subject(s) - stressor , hormone , innate immune system , immune system , biology , acute phase protein , immunology , fight or flight response , stress (linguistics) , physiology , inflammation , endocrinology , neuroscience , biochemistry , gene , linguistics , philosophy
Activation of the innate immune system and acute phase response (APR) results in several responses that include fever, metabolic adaptations and changes in behavior. The APR can be modulated by many factors, with stress being the most common. An elevation of stress hormones for a short duration of time can be beneficial. However, elevation of stress hormones repeatedly or for an extended duration of time can be detrimental to the overall health and well-being of animals. The stress and APR responses can also be modulated by naturally-occurring variations, such as breed, gender, and temperament. These three natural variations modulate both of these responses, and can therefore modulate the ability of an animal to recover from a stressor or infection. Understanding that cattle have different immunological responses, based on naturally occurring variations such as these, may be the foundation of new studies on how to effectively manage cattle so that health is optimized and production is benefited.