A positive fever response in Agama agama and Sceloporus orcutti (Reptilia: Agamidae and Iguanidae).
Three species of lizards (Agama agama, Mabuya perrotetii, and Sceloporus orcutti) were tested for a possible increase in mean selected body temperature (MSBT) in response to intraperitoneal injection of alcohol-killed Aeromonas sobria, a gram-negative bacterium known to be pathogenic to reptiles. A paired experimental design was utilized in which each animal was given an injection of sterile saline and 1.10(10) A. sobria. Body temperatures were monitored via indwelling cloacal thermocouples at 4-min intervals for one 12-h light period under saline injection and for two consecutive 12-h light periods under bacteria injection. Agama agama demonstrated a significant increase in MSBT on both day 1 and day 2 of bacteria injection with increases of 2.7 and 2.3 degrees C, respectively. The latency period on day 1 averaged 6.4 h. Sceloporus orcutti demonstrated a significant decrease in MSBT on day 1 of bacteria injection and a significant increase in MSBT of 1.0 degree C on day 2 of bacteria injection. No fever was evident in S. orcutti until the beginning of day 2. Mabuya perrotetii did not exhibit a significant change in MSBT on either day 1 or day 2 of bacteria injection. Agama agama (family Agamidae) is the first Old World reptile to exhibit a fever response to bacteria injection, and with these results fever has now been demonstrated in the lizard families Agamidae, Iguanidae, and Teiidae.
Department of Biology, California State University, Los Angeles 90032.
C E
CE
Ortega
D S
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Stranc
M P
MP
Casal
G M
GM
Hallman
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AE
Muchlinski
D000333:Aeromonas / Q000472:pathogenicity; D000818:Animals; D005334:Fever / Q000209:etiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000662:veterinary; D007076:Iguanas / Q000502:physiology; D008116:Lizards / Q000502:physiology*; D011749:Pyrogens; D013045:Species Specificity; D013997:Time Factors
D011749:Pyrogens