The acceptance of animal products is increasingly associated with standardized animal welfare, which relates to appropriate animal husbandry from birth to slaughter. In particular, shipment to the slaughterhouse is considered as a critical process exposing the animals to a number of, in part severe, stressors. New biomarkers may be useful for the assessment of animal welfare. The IGF-system has been assessed in a commercial pig transport in conjunction with established markers of stress response. Furthermore, the effect of repeated restraint as an experimental model for repeated acute stress was investigated. During shipment from farm to slaughterhouse, plasma concentrations of IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-2 were significantly reduced (p < 0.01). After shipment, the plasma concentrations of IGFBP-5, glucocorticoids and IL-2 increased but decreased after lairage (p < 0.05) whereas IGF-1 decreased after shipment (p < 0.01). Repeated acute stress increased concentrations of IGFBP-3 and IGF-1 in exsanguination blood (p < 0.05). Differential IGF- signatures can indicate altered endocrine or metabolic control and thus contain complex animal-related information. The somatotropic axis may be of particular interest when established biomarkers such as cortisol, glucose, or lactate cannot be used for the assessment of animal stress or welfare.

• MeSH
• Biomarkers blood   MeSH
• Time Factors MeSH
• Animal Husbandry MeSH
• Transportation MeSH
• Stress, Physiological * MeSH
• Glucocorticoids blood   MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 3 blood   MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor I analysis   MeSH
• Interleukin-2 blood   MeSH
• Abattoirs * MeSH
• Animal Welfare MeSH
• Swine MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 2 blood   MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 5 blood   MeSH
• Stress, Psychological prevention & control   MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Check Tag
• Animals MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Biomarkers MeSH
• Glucocorticoids MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 3 MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor I MeSH
• Interleukin-2 MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 2 MeSH
• Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 5 MeSH