Light and water are not simple conditions: fine tuning of animal housing in male C57BL/6 mice
Autor: | Stefan O. Reber, Sandra Foertsch, Andrea M. Füchsl, Dominik Langgartner |
---|---|
Rok vydání: | 2016 |
Předmět: |
Male
0301 basic medicine C57BL/6 Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System medicine.medical_specialty Physiology Photoperiod Pituitary-Adrenal System Adrenocorticotropic hormone Mice 03 medical and health sciences Behavioral Neuroscience Basal (phylogenetics) 0302 clinical medicine Adrenocorticotropic Hormone Tap water Internal medicine Adrenal Glands medicine Animals Thymus weight Lighting Morning biology Endocrine and Autonomic Systems Dark cycle Reproducibility of Results Water biology.organism_classification Housing Animal Mice Inbred C57BL Psychiatry and Mental health 030104 developmental biology Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology Endocrinology Cytokine secretion Corticosterone 030217 neurology & neurosurgery |
Zdroj: | Stress. 20:27-35 |
ISSN: | 1607-8888 1025-3890 |
Popis: | While animal housing conditions are highly controlled and standardized between different laboratories, there are still many subtle differences that unavoidably influence the host organisms and, consequently, interlaboratory reproducibility. Here, we investigated the physiological and immunological consequences between two light/dark cycle (LDC) lengths (14-h/10-h vs. 12-h/12-h LDC) and two commonly used forms of drinking water (acidified drinking water (AW) versus normal tap water (NW)) in single-housed (SH) mice. Our results indicate that SH mice bred under a 12-h/12-h LDC and NW at the supplier's facility showed increased basal morning plasma corticosterone (CORT) levels even 4 weeks after arrival at our animal facility employing a 14-h/10-h LDC and AW. This effect was even more pronounced two weeks after arrival and had abated after 8 weeks. In agreement, increased plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), adrenal in vitro ACTH sensitivity, as well as relative and absolute adrenal weight normalized during this 8-week exposure to the novel and unfamiliar 14-h/10-h LDC and AW. Employment of a 12-h/12-h LDC in our facility completely abrogated the CORT-elevating effects of the 14-h/10-h LDC, despite these animals drinking AW. When both the water and light conditions were matched to those at the supplier's facility, we observed a further reduction in adrenal weight, increased thymus weight, and decreased pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion of isolated and anti-CD3/28-stimulated mesenteric lymph node cells. In summary, our results indicate that prolonged alteration of both the light phase and drinking water represent severe and long-lasting stressors for laboratory rodents. These findings are of general interest for all scientists obtaining their experimental animals from conventional suppliers. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
Externí odkaz: |