This document summarizes abiotic stress in animals and its management. It discusses how abiotic stressors like extreme temperatures, drought, and flooding negatively impact animal growth, productivity, and biodiversity. Climate change is increasing global temperatures and causing more extreme weather. This raises heat stress levels in animals and alters disease transmission patterns by affecting pathogens, vectors, and host populations. The document outlines physiological, molecular, and management adaptations animals use to cope with abiotic stressors, but climate change poses ongoing challenges to livestock production and health.

1. ABIOTIC STRESS IN ANIMALS
AND ITS MANAGEMENT
Dr. V.K.Gupta
Senior Scientist,
Medicine Division
I.V.R.I.IZATNAGAR(UP)

2. INTRODUCTION
• Abiotic stress: the negative impact of non-living factors
on the living organisms in a specific environment
(Kumar et al., 2012)
• Naturally occurring
• Unavoidable
• Most harmful factor affecting growth and productivity
(Gao et al., 2007)
• Biodiversity:As the level of abiotic stress↑, the number
of species ↓

3. • Melting of ice: removes hunting ground for polar bear
and reduced body weight
• Flood and water scarcity: deteriorates water quality
and habitat destruction
• Food availability: alter food availability to migratory
species eg: red foxes introduction to Australia
• Major species affected: Polar bear, Indian tiger,
migratory water fowl

4. HISTORY
• Extinction of Dinosaur: asteroid collision (66 billion years
ago) (Alvarez, 1980)
• The cellular stress response was first observed in Drosophila
busckii salivary glands that had been exposed to an increased
temperature (Ritossa, 1962)
• Stress proteins are named heat shock proteins (hsp), due to
their inducibility by increase in temperature
(Tissieres et al., 1974)

5. ABIOTIC STRESSORS
• Extreme temperature (Palta et al., 2006)
• Humidity
• Intense solar radiation in summer, drought
(Pal et al., 2013)
• Flood, high winds, natural disasters
• Salinity, acidity, mineral toxicity
• Nutrient deficiency (Peden et al., 2007)

6. Global warming and Heat stress
Global average surface temperature rise between 1.8-
4˚C by 2100. ( IPCC,2007)
Global warming refers to the gradual increase of the
Earth’s temperature because of energy trapped by the
atmosphere.

7. CO2
• Large amounts from the burning of fossil fuels
• Fertilizer is used to grow crops
• CO2 is emitted during livestock feed production
• Deforestation - forests are harvested or burned large amounts of
CO2 are released into the atmosphere
Source of greenhouse Gases
N2O
• “Unmanaged” manure also emits greenhouse gases
• From feedlots, chemical plants, auto emissions,
agricultural practices- Ammonia fertilizers
Nitrous oxide
Carbon dioxide
(CO2, N2O, O3, CH4, CFCs)

8. • Methane : natural by-product of Enteric Fermentation
• Ruminant animals are the major emitters of methane - unique
digestive process that occurs in a large “fore-stomach”
• Anaerobic decomposition of manure
• Decaying vegetation.
• Agriculture, especially rice paddies with anaerobic bacteria.
Methane (CH4)
Methane

9. Global GHG emission (IPCC, 2007)

10. Source: Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center
Over past 200 years the
atmospheric concentration
of CO2 increased about
31%

11. Observed Changes and Effects
Drought
Floods,
Storms
Air quality
Vectors
climate
Forest fire livestock
Ice melting- sea level rise

12. • Heat stress is the most stressful of all abiotic stressors
in animals
• Due to overexposure or overexertion in extreme
environmental temperature
(Seijan et al., 2015)
• Thermal comfort zone 5-15˚C in temperate region
(Sirohi & Michaelowa, 2007)
• TCZ 13-27˚C for Indian goats (Mishra, 2009)

13. Prasad et al., 2015

14. ADAPTIVE MECHANISMS TO
ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS
(Seijan 2013)

15. • Physiological adaptation mechanisms:rectal temperature, pulse
rate and respiration rate↑ in small ruminants
(Sharma et al.,2013)
• Hormonal changes: prolactin , cortisol ↑
: T3 and T4 , plasma aldosterone level ↓
(Sivakumar et al.,2010)
• Haematology : decrease in hemoglobin and PCV
(Temizel et al., 2009 )
• Serum biochemistry: increase in SOD level in goats during
heat stress (Kumar et al.,2011)
• Concentration of vitamin C and vitamin E lowered during heat
stress in goats (Kumar et al., 2011)

16. • Decrease in total protein concentration and increase in HSP
concentrations in goats have been reported during heat stress
(Dangi et al., 2012)
• Blood glucose and total cholesterol level decreases during
summer season and increases during winter season in goats
(Ocak et al.,2010)
• Lowers the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and lactic
dehydrogease (LDH) activity due to decrease in thyroid
activity
(Helal et al., 2010)
• Serum ALT value found to be increased during heat stress in
goats (Sharma and Kataria, 2011).

17. MOLECULAR MECHANISM
• HSP: Expression of many HSPs including HSP32, HSP40,
HSP60, HSP70, HSP90, HSP110 (Sharma et al., 2013 )
stressors
•C-reactive protein (CRP), p53, p21, interleukin-6, interleukin-8,
VEGF(Vascular endothelial growth factor), cNOS, iNOS
(Sonna et al., 2002)

18. IMPACT ON LIVESTOCK
PRODUCTION
Deleterious effects are the result of
1. The hyperthermia associated with heat stress
2. The physiological adjustments made by the
stressed animal to regulate homeostasis
• Affecting organisms on ecological, organismal,
cellular and molecular levels
(Hochachka & Somero, 2002)

19. EFFECT OF ABIOTIC STRESSES ON
LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION
• Growth
• Milk production (West, 2003)
• Negative impacts on reproduction
(Hansen, 2007; Marai&Habeeb, 2010)
• Heat stress reduces the performance of laying hens by
reducing egg production, egg weight, shell thickness body
weight and feed consumption
(Mashaly et al., 2004)
• Availability of feed and water
• Distribution of livestock pest and disease
• Immune function (Elvinger et al., 1992)

20. GROWTH
• Reduced voluntary feed intake
• Reduced anabolism (Seijan et al., 2010)
• Increased catacholamines and glucocorticoids
↑catabolism (Marai et al., 2007)
• Redistribution of blood flow to body surface → GI
ischaemia and hypoxia→ ↓ food assimilation
(Leon, 2008)

21. REPRODUCTIVE FUNCTION
Length of oestrous cycle and degree of expression of
oestrus in buffaloes↓
Affect FSH-R signalling pathway in the granulosa cells
of growing follicles, causing decreased estrogen levels,
which are known to produce increased follicular atresia
(Ozawa et al., 2005)

22. Suppress aromatase activity in granulosa cells and
decrease the estradiol concentrations in the follicular fluid
and plasma of dairy cows
(Badinga et al., 1993)
↓ the fertility of dairy cows in summer by decreased
estradiol secretion from the dominant follicle
(De Rensis and Scaramuzzi, 2003).
Oocyte development and maturation by altering
progesterone, luteinizing hormone and follicle-
stimulating hormone and dynamics (Ronchi et al., 2001)

23. Impairment of embryo development and ↑ embryo mortality in
cattle, mares and pig (Hansen, 2007; Mortensen et al., 2009)
A drop in conception rates (cattle& rabbits) about 20–27% can
occur in summer (Chebel et al., 2004; Lucy, 2002; Marrai et al., 2001)
 Disruptions in spermatogenesis (Perez-Crespo et al., 2008)
Semen concentration, number of spermatozoa per ejaculate of
bulls are lower in heat stress condition
(Mathevon et al., 1998; Nichi et al., 2006)

24. MILK PRODUCTION
• Lactose production: primary osmoregulator and determinant of
milk yield-
• reduction of glucose availability and reduction of feed intake
under hot conditions leads to the reduction of milk yield
(Baumgard et al., 2007)
• India:losing 2% of the total milk production, (>Rs 2,660 C )
• ↓ the milk secretion by up regulating the activity of milk borne
negative feedback regulatory system (Silanikove et al., 2000)

25. DISTRIBUTION OF LIVESTOCK
DISEASE AND VECTORS
• Altered pattern of diseases in animals
• Emergence of new disease
• Change in prevalence of existing disease
• Change in the distribution and abundance of vectors
• The reduction in the amount of saliva produced and
salivary HCO3
− increase the susceptibility to sub-clinical
and acute rumen acidosis
(Kadzere et al., 2002)
• higher incidence of mastitis during periods of hot weather
(Chirico et al., 1997)

26. DISEASE EMERGENCE AND REEMERGENCE
• Since 1975 nearly 30 new disease has emerged and some diseases
re emerged (WHO)
IPCC AR4, 2007
The climatic changes induced by global warming exert a selection pressure that will
modify the biodiversity of pathogens and the epidemiology of the infections
(Lovejoy, 2008)

27. 1. On pathogen- changing behaviour
bacteria developed mechanisms to survive and grow in unfavorable
stress conditions eg. E.coli O157:H7 survive in acidic condition at
pH 2 (Mirski et al., 2011)
Gene transfer between related and unrelated bacterial species
(Mirski et al., 2011)
eg. Non toxigenic V. cholerae strains acquired the genes encoding cholera
toxin from bacteriophage
Gene transfer and Environmental adaptation eg.. MRSA
EFFECT ON DISEASE

28. Increasing CO2 concentrations leads to stimulation of microbial
growth (Blatchford, 2009)
Higher humidity favors microorganisms to more invasive in the
host and development of disease (Petzoldt , 2005)
High temperatures and moisture have on growth of mycotoxin-
producing fungi (Lacetera et al., 2003; Vitali et al., 2004)
2. Rising sea levels will lead to coastal flooding and risks for
water-borne zoonoses

29. 3. ↑ rainfall more crops and food, ↑ rodent populations and rodent-
borne zoonoses eg. Hanta virus infection
4. The heavy rainfalls eg. Rift Valley fever outbreaks in East
Africa
5. Migration of wild birds is involved in disease transmission.
With alteration in seasons, changes in migration patterns eg. WNF
6. ↑ temperature and rainfall leads to emergence of vector borne
diseases (vectors are the most sensitive to climatic temperature
variability)
(Naicker et al., 2011)

30. EFFECT ON VECTORS
• Increased rain may increase larval habitat
• Heavy rainfall events can synchronize vector host-seeking and
virus transmission
• Due to increase in global temperature tropical insects expand to
their territories to further latitudes & find the living conditions at
higher altitudes.
• Increasing vector population growth rate
• Increasing length of transmission period
• invertebrate metabolic rate
• egg production amount
• feeding frequency
• reducing duration of development periods

31. DIRECT EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON VECTOR-
BORNE DISEASE
• Climate change has the potential to
– Increase range or abundance of animal reservoirs and/or
arthropod vectors (e.g., Lyme disease, Malaria,
Schistosomiasis)
– Enhance transmission (e.g., West Nile virus and other
arboviruses)
– Increase importation of vectors or pathogens (e.g., Dengue,
Chikungunya, West Nile virus)
– Increase animal disease risk and potential human risk (e.g.,
African trypanosomiasis)
(Greer et al., 2008)

32. http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/index.php

33. Climate-disease links: Bluetongue
Holding Temperature (C)
History of bluetongue (BT) in Europe

34. Kyasanur forest disease (KFD)
Kyasanur forest disease virus (KFDV), Flavivirus, zoonotic
Hosts: small rodents, bats and monkeys may also carry the
virus. Infected tick (Haemaphysalis spinigera - major
vector).
Deer Mouse Cotton Rat
Rice Rat White-footed mouse

35. Ixodes ticks of Lyme disease in North America
has been expanding north into southern Ontario
and, more recently, into western Ontario
(Ogden, 2009)

36. Avian
influenza
Narrowing of habitats crowding of several species of birds into smaller
areas of remaining resources & ↑chances of intra & inter species
disease transmission - AVIAN INFLUENZA PANDEMIC
THREATS
Viruses deposited by migratory waterfowl during summer breeding at
higher latitudes may be stored in permafrost conditions in sub arctic
regions and survive for centuries (Zhang et al., 2006)

37. MANAGEMENT OF ABIOTIC
STRESS
• Genetic modification:
1. Identification of stress resilient genes
2. Identification of thermotolerant gene
3. Genetic selection for heat tolerance
4. Cellular and molecular therapies

38. Genomic technologies for unravelling heat and abiotic
stress towards climate resilient animals

39. DIETARY STRATEGIES
• The manipulation of dietary protein content and
energy density, and calcium (Nayyar and Jindal, 2010)
• Fat feeding
• Adequate fiber feeding (Beatty, 2005)
• Mineral supplementation
• Antioxidant supplementation (Sathya et al., 2007)
• Vitamin supplementation
• Cool drinking water

40. • Usage of vitamin C & E are practices believed to
alleviate the effects of heat stress
(Pardue &Thaxton, 1986; Bollengier-Lee et al., 1998)
• The inhibitory action of AA on adrenal
steroidogenesis is mediated via modulation of steroid
hydroxylating enzymes in the adrenal gland
(Seijan et al., 2015)

41. MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
• Shading
• Estrus detection and timely AI
• Hormonal treatment
• Care during pregnancy
• Local breeds having high adaptability
• Strengthen local breeds by cross breeding with
heat tolerant breeds
• Rain water harvesting
• Forecasting and crisis preparedness (Seijan et al., 2015)

42. SHELTER DESIGN
• Shelter materials
• Site of shelter
• Wind breaks
• Partially or totally enclosed shelters
• Provision for cooling
(Collier et al., 2006)

43. THANK YOU
Thank you