Fernström A L, Sutian W, Royo F, Westlund K, Nilsson T, Carlsson H-E, Paramastri Y, Pamungkas J, Sajuthi D, Schapiro S J, Hau J
Department of Neuroscience, Comparative Medicine, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Stress. 2008 Nov;11(6):467-76. doi: 10.1080/10253890801903359.
The stress associated with transportation of non-human primates used in scientific research is an important but almost unexplored part of laboratory animal husbandry. The procedures and routines concerning transport are not only important for the animals' physical health but also for their mental health as well. The transport stress in cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) was studied in two experiments. In Experiment 1, 25 adult female cynomolgus monkeys were divided into five groups of five animals each that received different diets during the transport phase of the experiment. All animals were transported in conventional single animal transport cages with no visual or tactile contact with conspecifics. The animals were transported by lorry for 24 h at ambient temperatures ranging between 20 degrees C and 35 degrees C. Urine produced before, during and after transport was collected and analysed for cortisol by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). All monkeys exhibited a significant increase in cortisol excretion per time unit during the transport and on the first day following transport.Although anecdotal reports concerning diet during transport, including the provision of fruits and/or a tranquiliser, was thought likely to influence stress responses, these were not corrobated by the present study. In Experiment 2, behavioural data were collected from 18 cynomolgus macaques before and after transfer from group cages to either single or pair housing, and also before and after a simulated transport, in which the animals were housed in transport cages. The single housed monkeys were confined to single transport cages and the pair housed monkeys were kept in their pairs in double size cages. Both pair housed and singly housed monkeys showed clear behavioural signs of stress soon after their transfer out of their group cages.However, stress-associated behaviours were more prevalent in singly housed animals than in pair housed animals, and these behaviours persisted for a longer time after the simulated transport housing event than in the pair housed monkeys. Our data confirm that the transport of cynomolgus monkeys is stressful and suggest that it would be beneficial for the cynomolgus monkeys to be housed and transported in compatible pairs from the time they leave their group cages at the source country breeding facility until they arrive at their final laboratory destination in the country of use.
科学研究中使用的非人灵长类动物运输过程中的应激是实验动物饲养管理中一个重要但几乎未被探索的部分。与运输相关的程序和常规操作不仅对动物的身体健康很重要，对它们的心理健康也同样重要。我们通过两个实验研究了食蟹猴（猕猴）的运输应激。在实验1中，25只成年雌性食蟹猴被分成五组，每组五只，在实验的运输阶段接受不同的饮食。所有动物都被安置在传统的单只动物运输笼中，与同种动物没有视觉或触觉接触。动物们被卡车运输24小时，环境温度在20摄氏度至35摄氏度之间。收集运输前、运输期间和运输后的尿液，并通过酶联免疫吸附测定（ELISA）分析皮质醇。所有猴子在运输期间和运输后的第一天，每单位时间的皮质醇排泄量都显著增加。尽管有关运输期间饮食的传闻报道，包括提供水果和/或镇静剂，被认为可能会影响应激反应，但本研究并未证实这些报道。在实验2中，收集了18只食蟹猴从群体笼转移到单笼或双笼饲养前后以及模拟运输前后的行为数据，模拟运输时动物被安置在运输笼中。单笼饲养的猴子被限制在单只运输笼中，双笼饲养的猴子则成对饲养在双倍大小的笼子里。成对饲养和单笼饲养的猴子在从群体笼转移出来后不久都表现出明显的应激行为迹象。然而，与应激相关的行为在单笼饲养的动物中比在成对饲养的动物中更普遍，并且这些行为在模拟运输饲养事件后持续的时间比对对饲养的猴子更长。我们的数据证实，食蟹猴的运输会产生应激，并表明从它们在原产国繁殖设施离开群体笼到抵达使用国的最终实验室目的地这段时间内，如果将食蟹猴成对安置和运输，对它们是有益的。
