title: Comparison of brain urocortin-3 and corticotrophin-releasing factor for physiological responses in chicks.
abstract: Corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) plays an important role in response to stress, and exerts a physiological effect via its receptor, CRH receptor type-1 (CRH-R1) and CRH receptor type-2 (CRH-R2) with high affinity to CRH-R1 in mammals. Urocortin-3 (UCN-3), a CRH family peptide, is an endogenous ligand for CRH-R2 in mammals. The physiological roles of UCN-3 and CRH-R2 have been investigated in mammals, although their roles still need to be clarified in chicks (Gallus gallus). Few studies have been performed comparing the physiological responses of CRH and UCN-3 in chicks. Therefore the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of UCN-3 on food intake, rectal temperature, crop-emptying rate and behaviors in chicks, and to compare these physiological responses with the effects resulting from CRH injection. The ICV injection of 20 and 80 pmol UCN-3 decreased food intake, increased rectal temperature and decreased crop-emptying rate and the results were similar to those achieved with CRH. The injection of both UCN-3 and CRH increased spontaneous activity but the behavioral patterns were different: CRH increased the number of vocalizations while UCN-3 increased the number of jumps, wing-flaps and scratching behaviors. These results suggest that UCN-3 regulates food intake, body temperature, and gastric emptying via the CRH-R2 in the brain of chicks, and these effects were similar to those induced by CRH.
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrobiological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Madoka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ogino
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrobiological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Aki
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Okumura
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrobiological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Md Sakirul Islam
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 24061 Blacksburg, VA, United States.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Cline
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrobiological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8566, Japan. Electronic address: tetsu@agr.ehime-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tachibana
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D002645:Chickens / Q000502:physiology*; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003426:Crop, Avian / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004435:Eating / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D005746:Gastric Emptying / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D057967:Infusions, Intraventricular; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D054832:Urocortins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D054832:Urocortins; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone
keywords: Behavior; Chick; Corticotropin releasing hormone; Crop-emptying rate; Food intake; Rectal temperature; Urocortin-3