Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
3
pubmed:dateCreated
2009-3-2
pubmed:abstractText
The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of physical and social stress on the avian forebrain morphology. Therefore, we used laying hens kept in different housing systems from puberty (approximately 16 weeks old) until the age of 48 weeks: battery cages, small littered ground pen, and free range system. Cell body sizes and catecholaminergic and serotonergic innervation patterns were investigated in brain areas expected to be sensitive to differences in environmental stimulation: hippocampal substructures and the nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL), a functional analogue of the prefrontal cortex. Our analysis shows both structures differing in the affected morphological parameters. Compared to battery cage hens, hens in the free range system developed larger cells in the dorsomedial hippocampus. Only these animals exhibited an asymmetry in the tyrosine hydroxylase density with more fibres in the left dorsomedial hippocampus. We assume that the higher spatial complexity of the free range system is the driving force of these changes. In contrast, in the NCL the housing systems affected only the serotonergic innervation pattern with highest fibre densities in free range hens. Moreover hens of the free range system displayed the worst plumage condition, which most likely is caused by feather pecking causing an altered serotonergic innervation pattern. Considering the remarkable differences between the three housing conditions, their effects on hippocampal structures and the NCL were surprisingly mild. This observation suggests that the adult brain of laying hens displays limited sensitivity to differences in social and physical environment induced post-puberty, which warrants further studies.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
May
pubmed:issn
1873-6300
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:volume
37
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
141-8
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2009
pubmed:articleTitle
Consequences of different housing conditions on brain morphology in laying hens.
pubmed:affiliation
Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, 44780 Bochum, NRW, Germany. nina.patzke@rub.de
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article