HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF CAPTIVE BEARDED VULTURES (GYPAETUS BARBATUS) IN CATALONIA (SPAIN).

Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) populations are declining worldwide primarily due to anthropogenic factors. A captive breeding program has been established in Spain, a country with one of the largest free-living populations in Europe, to further enhance the conservation efforts of this emblematic species. However, captive vulture populations can be exposed to different risks through food, such as drug residues and antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteria. Health surveillance of species involved in captive breeding programs is important to face introduction of healthy animals in situ and to obtain baseline clinical data. The objective of this study was to assess the general health status of bearded vultures held in captivity in Catalonia (northeastern Spain) by carrying out hematologic, biochemical, toxicologic, and bacteriologic analyses. A total of 16 bearded vultures were sampled; the data obtained from one vulture, with a chronic tibiotarsal fracture, were excluded from the statistical analysis. Hematologic and biochemical parameters of the bearded vultures were mostly within the range of standard values as stated in previous studies. Basal feather and serum corticosterone levels were analyzed and described for the first time in this species. A total of 15 Escherichia coli isolates were obtained that were resistant to fluoroquinolones (80%), tetracycline (60%), trimethoprim and ampicillin (40%), sulfamethoxazole (33%), and colistin (20%), with 40% of them being multidrug resistant. Three of 15 isolates were carriers of the mcr-1 gene. Only the injured bird previously treated with enrofloxacin was positive for fluoroquinolone residues. Periodic monitoring for the presence of AMR bacteria would be recommended in captive breeding programs as a preventive action to establish future therapies.

Assessment of the effect of adding L-carnitine and/or resveratrol to maturation medium before vitrification on in vitro-matured calf oocytes.

Cryopreservation may lead bovine oocytes to undergo morphological changes and functional damage due to the high-lipid content in the cytoplasm and the formation of reactive oxygen species. Against this background, the present study aimed to improve the cryotolerance and developmental competence of prepubertal calf oocytes by adding L-carnitine (LC) and/or resveratrol (R) to the IVM medium, as the former is involved in lipid metabolism and both are able to scavenge reactive oxygen species. With this purpose, different quality and functional oocyte parameters, such as spindle and chromosome configuration, DNA integrity, caspase activity, and the profile of genes involved in lipid metabolism and oxidative stress were evaluated in IVM bovine oocytes before or after vitrification/warming. Oocytes were matured in the absence (control) or presence of LC (3.03 mM) and/or R (1 µM) and then vitrified/warmed before IVF and embryo culture. All treatment groups (control, LC, R, and LC + R) of nonvitrified IVM oocytes showed similar rates (P > 0.05) of a normal spindle and chromosome configuration to oocytes vitrified/warmed after maturation in the presence of LC + R. When oocytes in all treatment groups were compared before and after vitrification, no significant differences were detected in DNA fragmentation as measured using the TUNEL method. However, the proportion of early apoptotic oocytes increased after vitrification/warming, except when previously matured with R. Vitrified/warmed oocytes matured in the presence of LC did not differ with nonvitrified oocytes in terms of the expression of ACACA, SLC2A1, PLIN2, HSPA1A, GPX1, and SOD1 genes. Similarly, expression of ACACA, SLC2A1, PLIN2, HSPA1A, and SOD1 genes in vitrified/warmed oocytes was similar to that of their fresh counterparts when matured in the presence of R. Finally, while the addition of LC and/or R to IVM medium had no effect on both cleavage and blastocyst rates either in fresh or vitrified oocytes. To conclude, the results of the present study report that the addition of LC and/or R to the IVM medium used for prepubertal bovine oocytes did not increase the embryo development potential of both fresh and vitrified oocytes. However, LC + R supplementation before vitrification decreased spindle damage, R addition-modulated apoptosis, and LC or R addition before vitrification positively affected the gene expression of vitrified/warmed oocytes.