Relationship between plasma dopamine concentration and temperament in horses

Abstract

Dopamine (DA) is a neurotransmitter associated with animal behaviors. Along with other neurotransmitters such as oxytocin (OXT) and serotonin (5-HT), DA is also involved in determining the temperament of animals. However, the involvement of DA in horse temperament has not been well elucidated. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to determine the correlation between plasma DA concentration and OXT and 5-HT concentrations and behavioral temperament (eg, docility and friendliness, fearfulness, dominance, and trainability) of horses. Blood samples were collected from 31 horses and the concentrations of DA, OXT, and 5-HT were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The temperament of horses was assessed and scored by 3 researchers. The correlation between the plasma concentration of DA and OXT or 5-HT was statistically analyzed using SPSS software and linear regression analysis was performed to determine the association between DA concentration and OXT and 5-HT concentrations. Meanwhile, the DA concentration associated with each type of temperament was analyzed via one-way analysis of variance with LSD post hoc analysis as well as Student's t-test (for trainability). Plasma DA concentration was not found to be correlated with either OXT or 5-HT concentrations. Furthermore, we found no correlation between plasma DA concentration and dominance and trainability. However, our results suggest the possibility of predicting the degree of fearfulness of horses using plasma DA concentrations. We conclude that plasma DA concentration has a potentiality to be used as a biomarker to predict the fearfulness of horses.

Keywords: Dominance; Dopamine; Fearfulness; Horses; Temperament; Trainability.