Biomedical subjects

Tom G Pottinger

Publications and source records attributed to Tom G Pottinger.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Evolutionary background for stress-coping styles: relationships between physiological, behavioral, and cognitive traits in non-mammalian vertebrates.

Reactions to stress vary between individuals, and physiological and behavioral responses tend to be associated in distinct suites of correlated traits, often termed stress-coping styles. In mammals, individuals exhibiting divergent stress-coping styles also appear to exhibit intrinsic differences in cognitive processing. A connection between physiology, behavior, and cognition was also recently demonstrated in strains of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) selected for consistently high or low cortisol responses to stress. The low-responsive (LR) strain display longer retention of a conditioned response, and tend to show proactive behaviors such as enhanced aggression, social dominance, and rapid resumption of feed intake after stress. Differences in brain monoamine neurochemistry have also been reported in these lines. In comparative studies, experiments with the lizard Anolis carolinensis reveal connections between monoaminergic activity in limbic structures, proactive behavior in novel environments, and the establishment of social status via agonistic behavior. Together these observations suggest that within-species diversity of physiological, behavioral and cognitive correlates of stress responsiveness is maintained by natural selection throughout the vertebrate sub-phylum.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2005

Divergence in behavioural responses to stress in two strains of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) with contrasting stress responsiveness.

The aim of this study was to establish whether two lines of rainbow trout divergent for their plasma cortisol response to a standardized stressor would show consistent differences in their behavioural response to a range of challenging situations. Our results show that the high- and low-responding (HR and LR) lines of rainbow trout did not differ in the aggression shown towards an intruder or in their response to the introduction of a novel object to their home environment. However, there was a difference in behaviour between the two selection lines when they were exposed to two unfamiliar environments. These results suggest that the behaviour of the HR and LR fish differs when they are challenged in unfamiliar environments, while their behaviour does not differ when they are challenged in their home environment. These observations are in agreement with studies on mammals that show that individuals with reactive coping styles perform similarly to proactive animals when they are challenged in a familiar environment, while they show different behaviour when they are challenged in unfamiliar environments. Thus, these results provide further evidence that the HR and LR selection lines of rainbow trout exemplify the two different coping styles described in mammals.

Aggression↗

PubMed2004

Behavioral and neuroendocrine correlates of displaced aggression in trout.

In humans and other primates, violent actions performed by victims of aggression are often directed toward an individual or object that is not the source of provocation. This psychological phenomenon is often called displaced aggression. We demonstrate that displaced aggression is either rooted in evolutionarily conserved behavioral and neuroendocrine mechanisms, or represent a convergent pattern that has arisen independently in fish and mammals. Rainbow trout that briefly encountered large, aggressive fish reacted with increased aggression toward smaller individuals. There was a strong negative correlation between received aggression and behavioral change: Individuals subjected to intense aggression were subdued, while moderate assaults induced strong agitation. Patterns of forebrain serotonin turnover and plasma cortisol suggest that the presence of socially subordinate fish had an inhibitory effect on neuroendocrine stress responses. Thus, subordinate individuals may serve as stress-reducing means of aggressive outlet, and displaced aggression toward such individuals appears to be a behavioral stress coping strategy in fishes.

Aggression↗

PubMed2003

Time-course of the effect of dietary L-tryptophan on plasma cortisol levels in rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss.

Isolated juvenile rainbow trout were fed a feed supplemented with L-tryptophan (TRP) for 3, 7 or 28 days, after which they were either sampled directly (undisturbed) or subjected to a standardised stressor prior to sampling. Controls (stressed and undisturbed) received the same feed but without any supplementary TRP. Stress resulted in a significant elevation of plasma [cortisol] in fish fed control feed and in fish fed TRP-supplemented feed for 3 and 28 days. However, fish fed TRP-supplemented feed for 7 days did not show any significant elevation of plasma [cortisol] in response to stress. Plasma levels of adrenocorticotropin followed the same general pattern as cortisol. Plasma and brain [TRP] were elevated in fish fed TRP-supplemented feed. The amino acid TRP is the precursor of the monoamine neurotransmitter serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) and the brain 5-HT system is known to be involved in the control of the hypothalamic-pituitary-interrenal (HPI) axis. Fish fed TRP-supplemented feed showed elevated levels of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA, a major 5-HT metabolite) in the hypothalamus and optic tectum. However, TRP treatment did not appear to result in any effects on brain dopaminergic activity and the effects on brain norepinephric activity do not support a role of norepinephrine in mediating the effects of TRP on HPI axis reactivity in rainbow trout.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗

PubMed2002

Differences in behaviour between rainbow trout selected for high- and low-stress responsiveness.

Two F1 lines of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss, divergent for plasma cortisol responsiveness, were generated by individual selection for post-stress cortisol values within the F0 generation. Adult females of the F1 generation were transferred to rearing in social isolation in observation tanks. After 6 days, locomotor activity in high-responding (HR) and low-responding (LR) individuals was quantified as time spent moving during a 20 min observation period. Behavioural observations were repeated the next day with a smaller conspecific intruder present in each observation tank. Differential hypothalamus-pituitary-interrenal axis activity in the two lines was subsequently confirmed by a standardised confinement stress test, which resulted in significantly higher plasma cortisol concentrations in HR than LR fish. HR fish displayed higher levels of locomotor activity than LR fish in the presence of an intruder, but not when in isolation. Aggressive behaviour towards the intruder was not seen, suggesting either a state-dependent lack of territorial aggression, or chronic stress in the experimental fish. A significantly higher incidence of feed intake was seen in LR trout when held in observation tanks (40% versus 0% of the fish took food when in isolation), suggesting that these fish acclimated more successfully to the experimental conditions than HR fish did. These results suggest that selection for stress responsiveness in salmonid fish leads to behavioural alterations, which are of potential importance to the performance of these fish in aquaculture rearing operations.

Aggression↗