Search

The breeding practices adopted and the equipment typically found in animal facilities produce sounds at frequencies within the auditory range of the mice (1 to 100 kHz), which can cause hearing and other non-hearing effects. Another aspect that could potentially affects the welfare of experimental animals would be their impaired health condition, since in addition to all the variables present in the environment, some of them are deliberately infected with pathogens. This study aimed to evaluate the possible effects of the chronic exposure of C57BL/6 and Tlr2/Tlr9(−/−) mice, uninfected and infected, with a low m.o.i. of Herpes simplex-1, at different noise levels present in the “Quiet” and “Noisy” rooms. Considering all procedures, a total of 51 male mice were used, 27 of the C57BL/6 and 24 of the Tlr2/Tlr9(−/−) strains. Physiological parameters such as weight gain, hemogram, cholesterol, glucose,corticosterone and cytokines involved in the immune response were evaluated together with the animals’ behavioral responses in Open Field and Light/Dark tests. In relation to the physiological parameters in C57BL/6, there was infection x noise interaction (P

Various mouse models to study dengue have been described by different authors, some of them using immunodeficient or some using humanized mice. Our group reported previously a deadly murine model, which used the intracranial inoculum of highly virulent Dengue virus (DENV) in immune competent mouse. Here we present a model of immune competent mouse (C57BL/6), infected subcutaneously by the same highly virulent DENV (DENV3 genotype I). In this immunocompetent systemic mice model, the cytokine levels and hematological parameters such as total and differential leukocyte and platelets counts, together with weight loss, were considered important monitoring parameters, allowing a better understanding of the systemic human disease. Mice were inoculated subcutaneously and evaluated by the percentage weight variation as well as the clinical signs. Hematological parameters and cytokines levels were measured and viral titration in brain tissue or serum neutralization was performed to confirm mice infection. The subcutaneously DENV inoculated mice showed weight loss after infection, but they did not show any other clinical signs. The leukocytes and platelets decreased after subcutaneous inoculation. The cytokines TNF alpha and IFN gamma increased after infection in mice. The subcutaneous model provided scope for improved understanding of the dengue pathogenesis, as well as possible mechanism for protection to subsequent mouse infected by intracranial route in mice. This model could be used to study the vertebrate immune response and evaluation of drugs or vaccine against dengue virus.