Abstract
Simple SummaryCortisol and catecholamines (dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine) are released in response to stress and directly stimulate glycogen mobilization, thus influencing meat acidification. The aim of the study was to estimate and compare these stress indicators to evaluate the welfare of beef cattle, subjected to either traditional slaughtering (with stunning) or to slaughtering with religious Jewish rite (without stunning). Significant differences in plasma cortisol and catecholamine levels were observed during exsanguination by monitoring animals in the pre-slaughtering (before and after transportation) and slaughtering phases. Cortisol, dopamine and norepinephrine, but not epinephrine, were markedly higher in the animals slaughtered by the religious rite. Pursuing animal welfare in the religious slaughtering procedures could produce advantages in terms of hygiene, organoleptic quality and shelf life of meat.Sixty Charolais male beef cattle of eight months of age were divided into two groups according to the slaughtering method, i.e., traditional or Kosher (religious Jewish rite). The aim of the study was to detect and compare the plasma concentrations of cortisol and catecholamines (dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine), by Elisa and HPLC test. These four stress indicators were evaluated during three different stages of each animal productive life: on the farm (step 1), after transportation (step 2) and during bleeding (step 3). The patterns of the parameters measured were similar and, interestingly, revealed significant changes throughout the three steps considered. The greatest variation between the two methods of slaughtering was observed in step 3, where we found a statistically significant difference with all the parameters except epinephrine. In the animals slaughtered by the religious rite, cortisol, dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine were 68.70 ± 30.61 nmol/L; 868.43 ± 508.52 ng/L; 3776.20 ± 1918.44 ng/L; and 4352.20 ± 3730.15 ng/L, respectively, versus 45.08 ± 14.15 nmol/L; 513.87 ± 286.32 ng/L; 3425.57 ± 1777.39 ng/L; and 3279.97 ± 1954.53 ng/L, respectively, in the other animals. This suggests that the animals slaughtered by the Kosher rite are subjected to higher stress conditions at the exsanguination phase. The animals slaughtered by the religious Jewish rite showed lower cortisol and catecholamine levels on the farm (step 1) and after transportation to the slaughterhouse (step 2). This was likely because the animals selected at the end of step 1 by the Rabbis for the religious rite are usually the most docile and gentle.
Highlights
The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenocortical (HPA) axis releases glucocorticoids, such as cortisol, as part of the endocrine mechanism for self-protection of the body in presence of a stressor.The quantification of cortisol or its metabolites is a physiological indicator for the stress assessment [1].Several studies have focused on the evaluation of cortisol or cortisol metabolites levels in plasma, faeces, urine, saliva and milk [2]
Cortisol was lower in group A than in group B in step 1 (F: 0.648; p = 0.424) and 2 (F: 14.263; p = 0.000); on the other hand, cortisol levels were higher in the animals of group A than in the animals of group B (F: 16.021; p = 0.000) in step 3
Dopamine was lower in group A than in group B in step 1 (F: 1.65; p = 0.20) and 2 (F: 3.53; p = 0.07); dopamine levels were higher in the animals of group A than in the animals of group B
Summary
The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenocortical (HPA) axis releases glucocorticoids, such as cortisol, as part of the endocrine mechanism for self-protection of the body in presence of a stressor.The quantification of cortisol or its metabolites is a physiological indicator for the stress assessment [1].Several studies have focused on the evaluation of cortisol or cortisol metabolites levels in plasma, faeces, urine, saliva and milk [2]. The quantification of cortisol or its metabolites is a physiological indicator for the stress assessment [1]. The activation of the sympathetic axis responds to short-term stress through the release of catecholamines (epinephrine and norepinephrine) into the blood stream [4,5]. Stress increases cortisol concentration in blood and triggers depletion of glycogen reserves in muscles [7]. This can lead to a decrease in post-mortem lactic acid production and cause a high pH of the meat [8]. Physiological stress responses (animal welfare indicators) were correlated to plasma catecholamines (epinephrine and norepinephrine) and to biochemical and hematological parameters [11]. Under stressful situations, high concentrations of catecholamines are discharged into the bloodstream in preparation for the possibility of rapid energy expenditure [13]
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