Horn Growth and Reproduction in a Long-Lived Male Mammal: No Compensation for Poor Early-Life Horn Growth

Secondary sexual traits in males of polygynous species are important determinants of reproductive success. It is, however, unknown if and how the development of continuously growing traits at different life-stages is related to reproduction in long-lived male mammals. In this study, we evaluated the relationship of early and late horn growth on social status and reproduction in long-lived male Alpine ibex (Capra ibex). For this, we analysed individual horn growth and assessed its effect on dominance and reproduction. No evidence was detected for compensatory horn growth, as late-life horn growth positively depended on early-life horn growth in males. Still, individuals with longer horn segments grown during early adulthood experienced a stronger age-dependent length decline in annual horn growth during the late development. Accordingly, a divergence between individual growth potential and realized horn growth late in life has to be assumed. Residual age-specific horn length and length of early grown horn segments both positively affected dominance and reproductive success, whereas, contrary to our expectation, no significant effect of the length of horn segments grown during the late development was detected. Suspected higher somatic costs incurred by high-quality males during their late development might at least partly be responsible for this finding. Overall, our study suggests that the total length of horns and their early development in long-lived male Alpine ibex is a reliable indicator of reproductive success and that individuals may be unable to compensate for poor early-life growth performance at a later point in life.

Novel Features of the Prenatal Horn Bud Development in Cattle (Bos taurus).

Whereas the genetic background of horn growth in cattle has been studied extensively, little is known about the morphological changes in the developing fetal horn bud. In this study we histologically analyzed the development of horn buds of bovine fetuses between ~70 and ~268 days of pregnancy and compared them with biopsies taken from the frontal skin of the same fetuses. In addition we compared the samples from the wild type (horned) fetuses with samples taken from the horn bud region of age-matched genetically hornless (polled) fetuses. In summary, the horn bud with multiple layers of vacuolated keratinocytes is histologically visible early in fetal life already at around day 70 of gestation and can be easily differentiated from the much thinner epidermis of the frontal skin. However, at the gestation day (gd) 212 the epidermis above the horn bud shows a similar morphology to the epidermis of the frontal skin and the outstanding layers of vacuolated keratinocytes have disappeared. Immature hair follicles are seen in the frontal skin at gd 115 whereas hair follicles below the horn bud are not present until gd 155. Interestingly, thick nerve bundles appear in the dermis below the horn bud at gd 115. These nerve fibers grow in size over time and are prominent shortly before birth. Prominent nerve bundles are not present in the frontal skin of wild type or in polled fetuses at any time, indicating that the horn bud is a very sensitive area. The samples from the horn bud region from polled fetuses are histologically equivalent to samples taken from the frontal skin in horned species. This is the first study that presents unique histological data on bovine prenatal horn bud differentiation at different developmental stages which creates knowledge for a better understanding of recent molecular findings.

Analysis of behavioral changes in dairy cows associated with claw horn lesions

Detecting lame cows is important in improving animal welfare. Automated tools are potentially useful to enable identification and monitoring of lame cows. The goals of this study were to evaluate the suitability of various physiological and behavioral parameters to automatically detect lameness in dairy cows housed in a cubicle barn. Lame cows suffering from a claw horn lesion (sole ulcer or white line disease) of one claw of the same hind limb (n=32; group L) and 10 nonlame healthy cows (group C) were included in this study. Lying and standing behavior at night by tridimensional accelerometers, weight distribution between hind limbs by the 4-scale weighing platform, feeding behavior at night by the nose band sensor, and heart activity by the Polar device (Polar Electro Oy, Kempele, Finland) were assessed. Either the entire data set or parts of the data collected over a 48-h period were used for statistical analysis, depending upon the parameter in question. The standing time at night over 12 h and the limb weight ratio (LWR) were significantly higher in group C as compared with group L, whereas the lying time at night over 12 h, the mean limb difference (△weight), and the standard deviation (SD) of the weight applied on the limb taking less weight were significantly lower in group C as compared with group L. No significant difference was noted between the groups for the parameters of heart activity and feeding behavior at night. The locomotion score of cows in group L was positively correlated with the lying time and △weight, whereas it was negatively correlated with LWR and SD. The highest sensitivity (0.97) for lameness detection was found for the parameter SD [specificity of 0.80 and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.84]. The highest specificity (0.90) for lameness detection was present for Δweight (sensitivity=0.78; AUC=0.88) and LWR (sensitivity=0.81; AUC=0.87). The model considering the data of SD together with lying time at night was the best predictor of cows being lame, accounting for 40% of the variation in the likelihood of a cow being lame (sensitivity=0.94; specificity=0.80; AUC=0.86). In conclusion, the data derived from the 4-scale-weighing platform, either alone or combined with the lying time at night over 12 h, represent the most valuable parameters for automated identification of lame cows suffering from a claw horn lesion of one individual hind limb.

Driver Aggression as a Function of Status Concurrence: An Analysis of Horn-Honking Responses

Various field experiments were conducted to examine the influence of social status on aggression in road traffic. Horn-honking response times of subjects blocked by an experimental car at traffic lights were considered to be an indicator of the degree of aggression. During an initial experiment, the status of the frustrator was varied and an inverse relation was observed between status and aggression towards the frustrator. On the other hand, in a more recent experiment higher status aggressors were found to behave more aggressively. In our study we combined the two designs, i.e., we varied the status of the frustrator and at the same time measured the status of the aggressor. Neither results of the former experiments could be replicated, but we observed a reduction in aggression when frustrator and aggressor were of similar social status.

White matter integrity associated with volitional motor activity

Variations of white matter integrity have been associated with interindividual differences in brain function. Still, little is known about the impact of white matter integrity on quantitative motor behaviour. Diffusion tensor imaging and continuous wrist actigraphy were measured on the same day in 12 individuals. Fractional anisotropy as measure of white matter integrity was correlated with the motor activity level. Positive correlations of fractional anisotropy and activity level were detected in the cingulum and the right superior longitudinal fasciculus underneath the precentral gyrus. Negative correlations were found in the left corticobulbar tract, in the right posterior corpus callosum and in the left superior longitudinal fasciculus. Volitional motor activity was associated with white matter integrity in motor relevant fiber tracts.

Preclinical in vitro and in vivo characterization of the fully human monoclonal IgM antibody KBPA101 specific for Pseudomonas aeruginosa serotype IATS-O11

Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in ventilator-associated pneumonia is a serious and often life-threatening complication in intensive care unit patients, and new treatment options are needed. We used B-cell-enriched peripheral blood lymphocytes from a volunteer immunized with a P. aeruginosa O-polysaccharide-toxin A conjugate vaccine to generate human hybridoma cell lines producing monoclonal antibodies specific for individual P. aeruginosa lipopolysaccharide serotypes. The fully human monoclonal antibody secreted by one of these lines, KBPA101, is an IgM/kappa antibody that binds P. aeruginosa of International Antigenic Typing System (IATS) serotype O11 with high avidity (5.81 x 10(7) M(-1) +/- 2.8 x 10(7) M(-1)) without cross-reacting with other serotypes. KBPA101 specifically opsonized the P. aeruginosa of IATS O11 serotype and mediated complement-dependent phagocytosis in vitro by the human monocyte-like cell line HL-60 at a very low concentration (half-maximal phagocytosis at 0.16 ng/ml). In vivo evaluation of KBPA101 demonstrated a dose-response relationship for protection against systemic infections in a murine burn wound sepsis model, where 70 to 100% of animals were protected against lethal challenges with P. aeruginosa at doses as low as 5 microg/animal. Furthermore, a high efficacy of KBPA101 in protection from local respiratory infections in an acute lung infection model in mice was demonstrated. Preclinical toxicology evaluation on human tissue, in rabbits, and in mice did not indicate any toxicity of KBPA101. Based on these preclinical findings, the first human clinical trials have been initiated.