Studying Markers of Chronic Stress And Health Outcomes

SUMMARY: Researchers will use data from the Golden Retriever Lifetime study cohort to validate the first-ever tool for quantifying chronic stress and predicting stress-associated health risks in dogs.

THE PROBLEM: Chronic stress is associated with morbidity and mortality in all vertebrates. Quantifying this chronic stress is central to our understanding of how stress affects health and physical functioning, and to our development and assessment of strategies to intervene and ameliorate these effects.

Allostatic load (AL), known as ‘the cost of adaptation,’ is the accumulation of physiologic dysfunction caused by aging and the body’s response to chronic or frequent stressors. The development of the allostatic load index (ALI) to estimate AL in humans has led the way for us to identify the causes and health impacts of chronic stress in people. Outcomes of high allostatic load in people include many health conditions including cardiac disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis, hypothyroidism, chronic gastroenteritis, cognitive decline, and early mortality.

Allostatic load and its health consequences in animals are in the early stages of exploration. A validated tool is needed to understand the effects of chronic stress as a first step toward mitigation.

THE PROJECT: This case-control study will utilize the Morris Animal Foundation Golden Retriever Lifetime Study to investigate allostatic load, its association with age, sex, and temperament, and its value as a predictor of poor health outcomes and early mortality. Forty gonadectomized dogs (half male and half female) will be selected from the database as ‘cases’ with conditions of interest. Conditions of interest are defined as those with potential cardiovascular, autoimmune, metabolic, and degenerative etiologies known in humans to be associated with high allostatic load, including acquired cardiac disease, osteoarthritis, acquired endocrine disorders, and autoimmune disorders.

The team will analyze the data to inform development of their tool.

POTENTIAL IMPACT: The team hopes this validated tool, in conjunction with routine health examination and associated diagnostics, has the potential to enhance our ability to improve the well-being and extend the lives and careers of our beloved companions, assistants, and heroes.