Biology subjects

Floyd, C. L.

Publications and source records attributed to Floyd, C. L..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Vocal repertoire of adult domestic pigs in a laboratory environment

The use of domestic pigs in clinical training and biomedical research is expanding rapidly, increasing the need for reliable, noninvasive indicators of health and welfare. Vocal analysis offers a non-invasive promising tool, yet the acoustic repertoire of adult domestic pigs remains poorly defined. However, the vocalization repertoire of adult domestic pigs has yet to be characterized. This study characterizes the vocal repertoire of adult pigs housed in a biomedical research laboratory. Twelve mixed-breed pigs (2-3 months old; 5 males, 7 females) were recorded during routine husbandry and experimental procedures. Vocal classification was conducted using perceptual and objective clustering techniques. First, aural- visual (AV) inspection of spectrograms was used to construct a hierarchical repertoire. Second, a two-step cluster analysis based on six acoustic parameters (5% frequency, first quartile frequency, center frequency, 90% bandwidth, interquartile range bandwidth, and 90% duration) provided an objective classification. Agreement between methods was evaluated using Cramers V. A total of 1,136 vocalizations from 69 recordings were analyzed. AV classification revealed five major vocal classes-- grunt, squeal, complex, scream, and bark--subdividing into 16 distinct call types. Standardized definitions integrating descriptive and quantitative criteria are provided. The two-step cluster analysis identified two clusters as the optimal statistical solution, with moderate agreement between methods (Cramers V = 0.67, p < 0.0001). Most AV-defined call types aligned with previously reported repertoires, although whines, yelps, and stable screams were unique to this study. While two-cluster solutions are commonly reported, our findings indicate that richer acoustic structure exists and that high gradation among pig calls may limit the resolution of statistical clustering. These results establish a detailed acoustic framework for adult pig vocalizations and provide essential groundwork for developing predictive models to enhance welfare assessment and support comparative research in laboratory-housed pigs.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2026

Characterizing Mitochondrial Dysfunction Across Time in a Porcine model of Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) can result in temporary or permanent alterations in sensory, motor, and autonomic functions as a result of primary mechanical damage to the spinal cord. Functional recovery is often limited due to persistent secondary injury mechanisms like inflammation, vascular breakdown, and cellular damage. Mitochondrial dysfunction is a key driver of secondary injury pathology, and while mitochondrial-targeted therapies have shown promise in rodent models of injury, functional improvements fail to translate to humans. Pigs are excellent models for understanding both the behavioral and molecular consequences of SCI because of their physiological similarity to humans, which could bridge the translational gap between rodent research and clinical implementation. To develop effective, mechanistic-based therapies, we must understand the molecular underpinnings of SCI using both male and female animal models with high translational fidelity at multiple time points after injury. To date, research on mitochondrial dysfunction following SCI has been limited to female rodent models measured acutely (6h-7d) after injury. Here, we studied mitochondrial dysfunction at three different time points in male pigs to establish a relative time course of mitochondrial impairment following SCI that may be therapeutically targeted to treat secondary complications of injury. We measured mitochondrial bioenergetic function and electron transport chain (ETC) complex activities, as well as qualified mitochondrial dynamics and oxidative damage acutely (2h), sub-acutely (24h), and chronically (9wk) after SCI in adult male pigs. The results show distinct patterns of mitochondrial dysfunction between time points with functional deficits occurring 2h post-SCI, increased mitochondrial fragmentation at 24h post-SCI, and mitochondrial recovery by 9wks post-SCI. These studies offer insight into mitochondrial changes across time in a clinically relevant animal model of SCI in hopes of bridging the translational research gap.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2026

Rigor and Transparency in two neurotrauma-publishing journals: editorial policies improve transparent reporting.

Preclinical research in traumatic brain injury (TBI) continues to significantly increase knowledge and yield a large number of peer-reviewed studies, but translation of these results to the clinical setting has been minimal. Rigor and transparency factors such as concealment of group allocation (e.g., "blinding) or ensuring that reagents are identifiable are critical in ensuring that scientific studies are replicable and translatable. Yet, nearly all efforts aimed at measuring these factors have concluded that reporting practices are problematic and incomplete. One way to improve transparency of reporting practices is to require that authors address a set of transparency related items in some way, such as a checklist or a paper section. Recently, Journal of Neurotrauma, a leading publisher of preclinical TBI research, instituted a required rigor-related section, which is explained to authors via a set of transparency, rigor, and reproducibility (TRR) instructions (one example for each manuscript type). These documents include specific transparency sections explaining blinding, power calculations, protocols, code, and data deposition. Experimental Neurology is a journal that is similar in size, impact and topic but the journal does not have explicit instructions to authors about transparency items. The purpose of this study was to assess the degree to which transparency reporting items were included in published manuscripts comparing reporting practices in the Journal of Neurotrauma and Experimental Neurology. We used a commercial software, SciScore, which is an AI tool tuned to detect rigor/transparency sentences in published manuscripts and count the number found (roughly dividing by the number expected) to obtain a score. Overall, SciScore found that in 6 of 8 items that were explicitly asked for, such as power calculations, investigator blinding, inclusion criteria, attrition, and data were significantly greater (more than 10%) compared to Experimental Neurology. However in Journal of Neurotrauma papers with the extra rigor section, 3 of 4 rigor items that were not explicitly asked for in the template rigor documents, such as subject demographics or transparent antibody reporting were not different from Experimental Neurology. One item, reporting of the sex of subjects was significantly better in Experimental Neurology. This shows that the Journal of Neurotrauma required rigor section is effective in improving reporting, but it would be far better if sex as a biological variable and transparent reporting of reagents (items present on major checklists including NIH rigor criteria) would be included.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2022

A touchscreen device for behavioral testing in pigs

Pigs are becoming more common research models due to their utility in studying neurological conditions such as traumatic brain injury, Alzheimers disease, and Huntingtons Disease. However, behavioral tasks often require a large apparatus and are not automated, which may disinterest researchers in using important functional measures. To address this, we developed a touchscreen that pigs could be trained on for behavioral testing. A rack-mounted touchscreen monitor was placed in an enclosed, weighted audio rack. A pellet dispenser was operated by a radio frequency transceiver to deliver fruit-flavored sugar pellets from across the testing room. Programs were custom written in Python and executed by a Raspberry Pi. A behavioral shaping program was designed to train pigs to interact with the screen and setup responses for future tasks. Pigs rapidly learned to interact with the screen. To demonstrate efficacy in more complex behavior, two pigs were trained on a delay discounting tasks and two pigs on a color discrimination task. The device held up to repeated testing of large pigs and could be adjusted to the height of minipigs. The device can be easily recreated and constructed at a relatively low cost. Research topics ranging from brain injury to pharmacology to vision could benefit from behavioral tasks designed to specifically interrogate relevant function. More work will be needed to develop tests which are of specific relevance to these disciplines.

animal behavior and cognition↗