Next Steps for Utilizing Cetacean Blow or Exhaled Breath Condensate to Monitor the Physiological Response to Stressors and to aid in Determining Biologically Significant Disturbance
Abstract
There is a need now more than ever for the ability to assess the impacts of environmental and anthropogenic stressors on marine mammal health, fitness and reproduction. This is especially true for cetaceans given the limited biological sampling that can be obtained from free-swimming cetaceans. Cetacean blow, or exhaled breath condensate, has shown promise as a research and a health assessment tool for free-swimming cetaceans. A variety of health and physiological information can be obtained from blow including but notlimited to hormones, genetics and molecular components, as well as identification of bacterial communities.Our laboratory, through prior ONR-funded work conducted initial validation of this technique using trained aquarium whales. Initial investigations included determination of the type of collection device, protocols and methodologies for sampling, processing and validation of a commercially available enzyme immunoassay for measuring cortisol, testosterone and progesterone in beluga blow. More recent ONR efforts, have allowed for initial investigations in determining and validating a suitable marker of dilution; initial validation attempts of measuring thyroid hormones T3 and T4 for monitoring responses to stressors and determining metabolic health status; determination of the feasibility and utilization of genetic and transcriptomic techniques to characterize molecular markers of health in blow samples; and beginning steps in transitioning blow sampling techniques from aquarium whales to free-swimming whales. While substantial progress has been made in these areas additional work has been identified and is needed.Building upon ONR efforts, we propose to carry out the next steps that are necessary for validation of cetacean blow to investigate the physiological response to stressors. The objectives of this proposed project will utilize blow samples from aquarium belugas under controlled scenarios as well as wild belugas, including anticipated events that will bring about a physiological response. Next steps include 1) validation and optimization of ethanol extraction in cetacean blow for measurement of cortisol, urea (as a dilution marker) and thyroid hormones 2) evaluation of urea as a potential dilution marker in correcting environmental water contamination 3) investigation of hormones (cortisol and thyroidhormones with and without correction for dilution) and gene expression changes in blow in response to opportunistic stressor eventsand 4) determination if meaningful hormone and molecular data can be collected from a single breath from a free-swimming whale. Blow collection is feasible from free-ranging cetaceans and offers promise for monitoring and detecting physiologic responses to stressors, (such as sound), and to aid in determining biologically significant disturbance in order to inform the Navy and its operations. Moreover, blow collection is a useful tool that is also valuable in Navy relevant controlledacoustic and hearing research studies on managed care cetaceans, offering the ability for immediate physiological assessment after sound exposure.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jun 09, 2021
- Source ID
- N000142112568
Entities
People
- Tracy Romano
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- Sea Research Foundation
- United States Navy