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Although Mycobacterium bovis infection is commonly reported in red deer (Cervus elaphus), potential dif-ferences in the effects of infection on male and female animals in terms of body condition and clinical biochemistry have not been reported. Between November 2000 and January 2006, serum and biometrical data were collected post-mortem from 88 red deer. M. bovis-infected deer, particularly males, were typically older, heavier and in poorer body condition than uninfected animals. Serum triglyceride, cholesterol (both particularly in males) and total protein concentrations were lower, whereas serum creatinine (more evident in females), and immonoglobulin G and M concentrations were higher in the infected deer. These sex-related differences in the response to M. bovis infection in red deer should be considered when undertaking epidemiological assessments and designing disease control strategies as they may reflect differing roles of male and female animals as potential reservoirs or disseminators of disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stress vulnerability could influence the treatment response to anxiety associated with abrupt hormonal suppression. The present study explored the effects of different treatments on experimental anxiety induced by progesterone withdrawal (PW) in a stress-sensitive rat strain, Wistar Kyoto (WKY), in the burying behavior test (BBT). The following experimental series was conducted using independent groups of Wistar (control strain) and WKY ovariectomized rats: Experiment 1: Rats were treated for 5 days with oil, a constant dose of progesterone (0.5 mg/rat, s.c) or a combination of progesterone (0.5 mg/rat, s.c) plus fluoxetine (10 mg/kg, i.p); on day 6, all rats were subjected to BBT. Experiment 2: Rats received corn oil or decreasing doses of progesterone (0.84, 0.67, 0.5, 0.33 and 0.17 mg/rat; one dose daily); on day 6, the rats were subjected to BBT. Experiment 3: Rats were divided into two groups that were subjected to 30 days of standard conditions or environmental enrichment (EE); from days 25 to 30, all rats received a fixed dose of progesterone (0.5 mg/rat, s.c.) or vehicle. On day 31, the rats were tested with BBT. Results showed that PW increased anxiety in both strains, and fluoxetine prevented anxiety in WKY rats. In contrast, a gradual reduction of progesterone prevents the anxiety in Wistar but not in WKY. EE was preventive against the anxiety induced by PW in both strains of rats. Thus, the results suggest that anxiety induced by PW is prevented by EE while the anxiolytic effect of pharmacological treatments depends on stress vulnerability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]