Immunity, age & life-history traits in roe deer.
Immunosenescence patterns differ between populations
but not between sexes in a long-lived mammal.
Cheynel et al., 2017, Scientific Reports.
We investigated immunosenescence patterns over 7 years in both sexes of two contrasting roe deer populations. We first measured twelve immune markers to obtain a thorough identification of innate and adaptive components of immunity and assessed, from the same individuals,
the age-dependent variation observed in parasitic infections.
The influence of early-life allocation to antlers on male performance during adulthood: evidence from contrasted populations of a large herbivore.
Lemaître et al., 2018, Journal of Animal Ecology.
We evaluated the short-term and delayed consequences of energy allocation to antlers early in life in two contrasted populations of roe deer. Although most males mate successfully for the first time in their fourth year, antlers are grown annually from the first year of life onwards. We tested the prediction that a high level of allocation to antler growth during the first two years of life should lead to lower body mass, antler size and survival during the early and late
prime stages, as well as to reduced longevity overall.
Does body growth impair immune function
in a large herbivore?
Cheynel et al., 2019, Oecologia.
Using three roe deer populations experiencing contrasting environmental conditions, we tested for potential costs of growth on immune phenotype over both the short-term (during growth), and the long-term (during adulthood) over the course of an individuals’ life. We investigated potential costs on a set of 12 immune traits that reflect both innate and adaptive responses, and compared them between sexes and populations.
Maternal effects shape offspring physiological condition but do not senesce in a wild mammal.
Cheynel et al., 2021, Journal of Evolutionary Biology.
We assessed the influence of maternal age and body mass on offspring physiological condition in two populations of roe deer subjected to markedly different environmental conditions. We measured seven markers to index body condition and characterize the immune profile in 86 fawns which became recently independent of their known-aged mothers.
Short-term telomere dynamics is associated with glucocorticoid levels in wild populations of roe deer.
Lemaître et al., 2021, Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A.
While evidence that telomere length is associated with health and mortality in humans and birds is accumulating, a large body of research is currently seeking to identify factors that modulate telomere dynamics. We tested the hypothesis that high levels of glucocorticoids in individuals under environmental stress should accelerate telomere shortening in two wild populations of roe deer living in different ecological contexts.