{"id":{"repo_id":"unr","oai_identifier":"oai:scholarwolf.unr.edu:11714/515"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/unr/oai:scholarwolf.unr.edu:11714/515","repository":{"repo_id":"unr","name":"University of Nevada - Reno","base_url":"https://scholarwolf.unr.edu/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Seasonal Variation in Desert Tortoise Immune Function","abstract":"Threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) populations may be negatively impacted by upper respiratory tract disease. To more fully understand the general impact of diseases in wild populations, a more complete knowledge of the factors that contribute to immunocompetence in this species is necessary. We analyzed minimal seasonal fluctuations in innate immune function and white blood cell numbers in a colony of captive, healthy tortoises. Bacteriocidal assays measured the ability of constitutive natural antibodies and complement proteins to kill a standard strain of Escherichia coli. Ratios of heterophils to lymphocytes were used to infer relative levels of chronic stress and/or activity among the four seasons. Bacteriocidal capacity was significantly suppressed during winter relative to the other three seasons, but heterophil:lymphocytes did not vary significantly among seasons. These results suggest that tortoises may be inherently immunosuppressed during winter, but elevations in stress do not contribute to this immunosuppression.","abstract_html":"Threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) populations may be negatively impacted by upper respiratory tract disease. To more fully understand the general impact of diseases in wild populations, a more complete knowledge of the factors that contribute to immunocompetence in this species is necessary. We analyzed minimal seasonal fluctuations in innate immune function and white blood cell numbers in a colony of captive, healthy tortoises. Bacteriocidal assays measured the ability of constitutive natural antibodies and complement proteins to kill a standard strain of Escherichia coli. Ratios of heterophils to lymphocytes were used to infer relative levels of chronic stress and/or activity among the four seasons. Bacteriocidal capacity was significantly suppressed during winter relative to the other three seasons, but heterophil:lymphocytes did not vary significantly among seasons. These results suggest that tortoises may be inherently immunosuppressed during winter, but elevations in stress do not contribute to this immunosuppression.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Horn, Kelly"],"institution":"University of Nevada, Reno","degree_name":"Biology","degree_level":"Honors Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Tracy, Richard C."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013","date_published":"2013","updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:46:52Z","subjects":[],"languages":["en_US"],"rights":["In Copyright(All Rights Reserved)"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/11714/515","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Tracy, Richard C."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Horn, Kelly"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2017-01-24T23:09:06Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-01-24T23:09:06Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2013"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Honors Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Biology"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Nevada, Reno"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en_US"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright(All Rights Reserved)"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/11714/515"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["The University of Nevada, Reno Libraries will promptly respond to removal requests related to content that violates intellectual property laws, data protections, or has been uploaded without creator consent. Takedown notices should be directed to our ScholarWolf team (scholarwolf@library.unr.edu) with information about the object, including its full URL and the nature of your complaint."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) populations may be negatively impacted by upper respiratory tract disease. To more fully understand the general impact of diseases in wild populations, a more complete knowledge of the factors that contribute to immunocompetence in this species is necessary. We analyzed minimal seasonal fluctuations in innate immune function and white blood cell numbers in a colony of captive, healthy tortoises. Bacteriocidal assays measured the ability of constitutive natural antibodies and complement proteins to kill a standard strain of Escherichia coli. Ratios of heterophils to lymphocytes were used to infer relative levels of chronic stress and/or activity among the four seasons. Bacteriocidal capacity was significantly suppressed during winter relative to the other three seasons, but heterophil:lymphocytes did not vary significantly among seasons. These results suggest that tortoises may be inherently immunosuppressed during winter, but elevations in stress do not contribute to this immunosuppression."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["PDF"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Seasonal Variation in Desert Tortoise Immune Function"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Tracy, Richard C."],"dc:creator":["Horn, Kelly"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2017-01-24T23:09:06Z"],"dc:date.available":["2017-01-24T23:09:06Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2013"],"dc:description":["The University of Nevada, Reno Libraries will promptly respond to removal requests related to content that violates intellectual property laws, data protections, or has been uploaded without creator consent. Takedown notices should be directed to our ScholarWolf team (scholarwolf@library.unr.edu) with information about the object, including its full URL and the nature of your complaint."],"dc:description.abstract":["Threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) populations may be negatively impacted by upper respiratory tract disease. To more fully understand the general impact of diseases in wild populations, a more complete knowledge of the factors that contribute to immunocompetence in this species is necessary. We analyzed minimal seasonal fluctuations in innate immune function and white blood cell numbers in a colony of captive, healthy tortoises. Bacteriocidal assays measured the ability of constitutive natural antibodies and complement proteins to kill a standard strain of Escherichia coli. Ratios of heterophils to lymphocytes were used to infer relative levels of chronic stress and/or activity among the four seasons. Bacteriocidal capacity was significantly suppressed during winter relative to the other three seasons, but heterophil:lymphocytes did not vary significantly among seasons. These results suggest that tortoises may be inherently immunosuppressed during winter, but elevations in stress do not contribute to this immunosuppression."],"dc:format":["PDF"],"dc:identifier.uri":["http://hdl.handle.net/11714/515"],"dc:language.iso":["en_US"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright(All Rights Reserved)"],"dc:title":["Seasonal Variation in Desert Tortoise Immune Function"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_level":["Honors Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Biology"],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Nevada, Reno"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:46:52Z"}