Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer
As cancer progresses, its impact should manifest in the foraging behavior of its host much like the effects of endo-parasites that hinder foraging aptitudes and risk management abilities. Furthermore, the lifestyle of the host can impact tumor growth and quality of life. To approach these questions,...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.741389/full |
| _version_ | 1818910612518862848 |
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| author | Douglas F. Makin Ella Agra Manu Prasad Joel S. Brown Moshe Elkabets Jorge Fernando Saraiva Menezes Franklin Sargunaraj Burt P. Kotler |
| author_facet | Douglas F. Makin Ella Agra Manu Prasad Joel S. Brown Moshe Elkabets Jorge Fernando Saraiva Menezes Franklin Sargunaraj Burt P. Kotler |
| author_sort | Douglas F. Makin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As cancer progresses, its impact should manifest in the foraging behavior of its host much like the effects of endo-parasites that hinder foraging aptitudes and risk management abilities. Furthermore, the lifestyle of the host can impact tumor growth and quality of life. To approach these questions, we conducted novel experiments by letting C57BL/6 laboratory mice, with or without oral squamous cell carcinoma, free range in a large outdoor vivarium. Our goals were to: (1) determine whether one could conduct experiments with a mouse model under free range conditions, (2) measure effects of cancer burden on foraging metrics, (3) compare tumor growth rates with laboratory housed mice, and (4) begin to sort out confounding factors such as diet. With or without cancer, the C57BL/6 laboratory mice dealt with natural climatic conditions and illumination, found shelter or dug burrows, sought out food from experimental food patches, and responded to risk factors associated with microhabitat by foraging more thoroughly in food patches under bush (safe) than in the open (risky). We quantified foraging using giving-up densities of food left behind in the food patches. The mice’s patch use changed over time, and was affected by disease status, sex, and microhabitat. Males, which were larger, consumed more food and had lower giving-up densities than females. Relative to cancer-free mice, mice with growing tumors lost weight, harvested more food, and increasingly relied on patches in the bush microhabitat. The tumors of free-ranging mice in the vivarium grew slower than those of their cohort that were housed in mouse cages in animal facilities. Numerous interesting factors could explain the difference in tumor growth rates: activity levels, stress, weather, food intake, diet, and more. To tease apart one of these intertwined factors, we found that tumors grew faster when mice in the laboratory were fed on millet rather than laboratory mouse chow. While just a start, these novel experiments and framework show how free-ranging mice provide a model that can test a broader range of hypotheses and use a broader range of metrics regarding cancer progression and its consequences for the host. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T22:45:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2625c4c09a094030b898ec5a58baab53 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-701X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T22:45:34Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-2625c4c09a094030b898ec5a58baab532022-12-21T20:02:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution2296-701X2021-10-01910.3389/fevo.2021.741389741389Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in CancerDouglas F. Makin0Ella Agra1Manu Prasad2Joel S. Brown3Moshe Elkabets4Jorge Fernando Saraiva Menezes5Franklin Sargunaraj6Burt P. Kotler7Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelMitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelShraga Segal Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Genetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelDepartment of Integrated Mathematical Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL, United StatesShraga Segal Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Genetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelMitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelMitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelMitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, IsraelAs cancer progresses, its impact should manifest in the foraging behavior of its host much like the effects of endo-parasites that hinder foraging aptitudes and risk management abilities. Furthermore, the lifestyle of the host can impact tumor growth and quality of life. To approach these questions, we conducted novel experiments by letting C57BL/6 laboratory mice, with or without oral squamous cell carcinoma, free range in a large outdoor vivarium. Our goals were to: (1) determine whether one could conduct experiments with a mouse model under free range conditions, (2) measure effects of cancer burden on foraging metrics, (3) compare tumor growth rates with laboratory housed mice, and (4) begin to sort out confounding factors such as diet. With or without cancer, the C57BL/6 laboratory mice dealt with natural climatic conditions and illumination, found shelter or dug burrows, sought out food from experimental food patches, and responded to risk factors associated with microhabitat by foraging more thoroughly in food patches under bush (safe) than in the open (risky). We quantified foraging using giving-up densities of food left behind in the food patches. The mice’s patch use changed over time, and was affected by disease status, sex, and microhabitat. Males, which were larger, consumed more food and had lower giving-up densities than females. Relative to cancer-free mice, mice with growing tumors lost weight, harvested more food, and increasingly relied on patches in the bush microhabitat. The tumors of free-ranging mice in the vivarium grew slower than those of their cohort that were housed in mouse cages in animal facilities. Numerous interesting factors could explain the difference in tumor growth rates: activity levels, stress, weather, food intake, diet, and more. To tease apart one of these intertwined factors, we found that tumors grew faster when mice in the laboratory were fed on millet rather than laboratory mouse chow. While just a start, these novel experiments and framework show how free-ranging mice provide a model that can test a broader range of hypotheses and use a broader range of metrics regarding cancer progression and its consequences for the host.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.741389/fulldisease ecologyforaging ecologyforaging aptitudesrisk managementcancertradeoffs of food and safety |
| spellingShingle | Douglas F. Makin Ella Agra Manu Prasad Joel S. Brown Moshe Elkabets Jorge Fernando Saraiva Menezes Franklin Sargunaraj Burt P. Kotler Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution disease ecology foraging ecology foraging aptitudes risk management cancer tradeoffs of food and safety |
| title | Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer |
| title_full | Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer |
| title_fullStr | Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer |
| title_full_unstemmed | Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer |
| title_short | Using Free-Range Laboratory Mice to Explore Foraging, Lifestyle, and Diet Issues in Cancer |
| title_sort | using free range laboratory mice to explore foraging lifestyle and diet issues in cancer |
| topic | disease ecology foraging ecology foraging aptitudes risk management cancer tradeoffs of food and safety |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.741389/full |
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