Sound exposure-induced cytokine gene transcript profile changes in captivebottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) blood identified by a probe-basedqRT-PCR

[摘要] Cetacean health may be potentially affected by anthropogenic sound. We have initiatedinvestigations on the effect of low-frequency underwater sound on immunological genetranscript profiles of captive bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)using a probe-based quantitative gene expression assay. Six immunologic genes(IL-2Rα, -4, -10,-12, TNFα and IFNγ) were selected foranalysis using two validated housekeeping genes (PGK1 andHPRT1) as reference genes. Twenty-four blood samples from sixclinically healthy individuals and six blood samples from individuals after soundexposures were available. The gene transcript profile of sound-exposed dolphins wasconsistent with a stress-induced TH2 shift profile as compared to controls.This study may lead to better understanding of the effects of anthropogenic sound onimmune responses of cetaceans.

[学科分类] 兽医学

[关键词] cytokine;dolphin;immune response;qRT-PCR;sound