| Titre : | The effect of uropygial gland secretions of Spectacled Thrushes (Turdus nudigenis) on feather degradation and bacterial growth in vitro (2017) |
| Auteurs : | Carlos Verea, Auteur ; Juana Vitelli–Flores, Auteur ; Tomás Isturiz, Auteur ; Vidal Rodríguez–Lemoine, Auteur ; Carlos Bosque, Auteur |
| Type de document : | Article |
| Dans : | Journal of Ornithology (158(4) 2017/10/01) |
| Article en page(s) : | 1035-1043 |
| Langues: | Anglais |
| Résumé : | We studied if uropygial secretions protect Neotropical Spectacled (=Bare-eyed) Thrushes (Turdus nudigenis) from feather-degrading bacteria naturally harbored in their plumage and explored the possible mechanisms involved in feather protection. We chose Spectacled Thrushes because we had previously isolated from their plumage several bacterial strains with keratinolytic properties. We showed that preen secretions, in the amounts preened naturally onto the feathers of Spectacled Thrushes, retarded in vitro the degradation of feathers by Bacillus cereus, a bacterium previously shown to degrade feathers severely. However, we found no evidence that in liquid culture, uropygial secretions had a bacteriostatic effect of a chemical nature. On the contrary, preen secretions stimulated the growth of four keratinolytic bacteria naturally hosted by Spectacled Thrushes. Uropygial secretions of Spectacled Thrushes were sterile, thus we also discarded the hypothesis that feather protection could have been due to antimicrobials produced by symbiotic bacteria harbored in the uropygial gland. Our results support that uropygial secretion of Spectacled Thrushes retarded feather degradation not through a chemical effect, but possibly by alternative mechanisms such as the formation of a physical barrier that isolated feather-degrading bacteria from feathers. |
| En ligne : | https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10336-017-1461-8 |



