Measurement of Fecal Testosterone Metabolites in Mice: Replacement of Invasive Techniques.

Testosterone is the main reproductive hormone in male vertebrates and conventional methods to measure testosterone rely on invasive blood sampling procedures. Here, we aimed to establish a non-invasive alternative by assessing testosterone metabolites (TMs) in fecal and urinary samples in mice. We performed a radiometabolism study to determine the effects of daytime and sex on the metabolism and excretion pattern of radiolabeled TMs.

A robust high-throughput fungal biosensor assay for the detection of estrogen activity.

Estrogenic active compounds are present in a variety of sources and may alter biological functions in vertebrates. Therefore, it is crucial to develop innovative analytical systems that allow us to screen a broad spectrum of matrices and deliver fast and reliable results. We present the adaptation and validation of a fungal biosensor for the detection of estrogen activity in cow derived samples and tested the clinical applicability for pregnancy diagnosis in 140 mares and 120 cows.

Physiological and Behavioral Responses of Dairy Cattle to the Introduction of Robot Scrapers.

Autonomous mobile robot scrapers are increasingly used in order to clean the floors on dairy farms. Given the complexity of robot scraper operation, stress may occur in cows due to unpredictability of the situation. Experiencing stress can impair animal welfare and, in the long term, the health and milk production of the cows.

Training Reduces Stress in Human-Socialised Wolves to the Same Degree as in Dogs.

The welfare of animals in captivity is of considerable societal concern. A major source of stress, especially for wild animals, is the lack of control over their environment, which includes not being able to avoid contact with human beings. Paradoxically, some studies have shown that interactions with human beings may improve the welfare of wild animals in captivity.

Sex-specific effects of low-dose gestational estradiol-17β exposure on bone development in porcine offspring.

Estrogens are important for the bone development and health. Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals during the early development has been shown to affect the bone phenotype later in life. Several studies have been performed in rodents, while in larger animals that are important to bridge the gap to humans there is a paucity of data.

Influence of external factors on hair cortisol concentrations.

Measuring hair cortisol has attracted interest as a long term parameter for chronic stress evaluation. However, some studies support the hypothesis that locally produced cortisol, originating from the hair follicle or skin cells, affects concentrations in the hair. In an animal model the influence of different treatments (extensive brushing, administration of a hyperemising fluid that enhances blood circulation or a synthetic glucocorticoid) on the local cortisol production of hair was evaluated.

Cortisol but not testosterone is repeatable and varies with reproductive effort in wild red deer stags.

Although it is known that hormone concentrations vary considerably between individuals within a population, how they change across time and how they relate to an individual's reproductive effort remains poorly quantified in wild animals. Using faecal samples collected from wild red deer stags, we examined sources of variation in faecal cortisol and androgen metabolites, and the potential relationship that these might have with an index of reproductive effort. We also biologically validated an assay for measuring androgen metabolites in red deer faeces.

Immunoreactive cortisone in droppings reflect stress levels, diet and growth rate of gull-billed tern chicks.

Blood levels of corticosterone have been traditionally analyzed to assess stress levels in birds; however, measuring steroid hormone metabolites in feces and droppings has gained much interest as a noninvasive technique successfully used for such purposed in vertebrates. Diet may affect these fecal metabolite levels (e.g.

Maternally derived egg hormones, antibodies and antimicrobial proteins: common and different pathways of maternal effects in Japanese quail.

Avian eggs contain a variety of maternally-derived substances that can influence the development and performance of offspring. The levels of these egg compounds vary in relation to environmental and genetic factors, but little is known about whether there are correlative links between maternal substances in the egg underlying common and different pathways of maternal effects. In the present study, we investigated genetically determined variability and mutually adjusted deposition of sex hormones (testosterone-T, androstenedione-A4 and progesterone-P4), antibodies (IgY) and antimicrobial proteins (lysozyme) in eggs of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica).

Testing the effect of medical positive reinforcement training on salivary cortisol levels in bonobos and orangutans.

The management of captive animals has been improved by the establishment of positive reinforcement training as a tool to facilitate interactions between caretakers and animals. In great apes, positive reinforcement training has also been used to train individuals to participate in simple medical procedures to monitor physical health. One aim of positive reinforcement training is to establish a relaxed atmosphere for situations that, without training, might be very stressful.

Ambient temperature and air pressure modulate hormones and behaviour in Greylag geese (Anser anser) and Northern bald ibis (Geronticus eremita).

Ambient temperature and air pressure are relevant stimuli that can elicit hormonal responses in alignment with adjusting individuals' physiology and behaviour. This study investigated possible changes in corticosterone (C) and testosterone (T) and contingencies with behaviour in response to ambient temperature and air pressure, and it evaluated the temporal response dynamics of these hormones in 12 individual Greylag geese (Anser anser) over 26 and 12 individual Northern bald ibis (Geronticus eremita) over 27 days, during late winter. Immunoreactive metabolites of C and T were analysed non-invasively from 626 fecal samples by means of group-specific antibodies and correlated to behaviour and weather factors.

The role of an alpha animal in changing environmental conditions.

The maintenance and development of conservation areas by grazing of large herbivores, such as Przewalski's horses, is common practice. Several nature conservation areas house male bachelor groups of this species. When males are needed for breeding they are removed from the groups, often without considering group compositions and individual social positions.

Parturition in horses is dominated by parasympathetic activity of the autonomous nervous system.

External and internal stressors prolong parturition in different species. At parturition, sympathoadrenal activation should be avoided because an increased sympathetic tone may cause uterine atonia via β2-receptors. We hypothesized that at physiological parturition, horses are under parasympathetic dominance, and stress-response mechanisms are not activated during delivery of the foal.

Measurement of cortisol in dog hair: a noninvasive tool for the diagnosis of hypercortisolism.

Background: The clinical signs of hyperadrenocorticism (hypercortisolism) in dogs are known to be caused by chronic overexposure to glucocorticoids. The quantification of cortisol in serum, saliva or urine reflects the cortisol concentration at the time of sample collection, but in suspected hyperadrenocorticism it may be preferable to examine a long-term parameter of cortisol production.

Hypothesis/objectives: There is a need for a noninvasive method to monitor the long-term production of cortisol in dogs.

Measurements of salivary alpha amylase and salivary cortisol in hominoid primates reveal within-species consistency and between-species differences.

Salivary alpha amylase (sAA) is the most abundant enzyme in saliva. Studies in humans found variation in enzymatic activity of sAA across populations that could be linked to the copy number of loci for salivary amylase (AMY1), which was seen as an adaptive response to the intake of dietary starch. In addition to diet dependent variation, differences in sAA activity have been related to social stress.

Moderate heat challenge increased yolk steroid hormones and shaped offspring growth and behavior in chickens.

Background: Environmental challenges might affect the maternal organism and indirectly affect the later ontogeny of the progeny. We investigated the cross-generation impact of a moderate heat challenge in chickens. We hypothesized that a warm temperature--within the thermotolerance range--would affect the hormonal environment provided to embryos by mothers, and in turn, affect the morphology and behavioral phenotype of offspring.

Assessment of adrenocortical activity by non-invasive measurement of faecal cortisol metabolites in dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius).

The aim of this study was to determine whether glucocorticoid production could be monitored non-invasively in dromedary camels by measuring faecal cortisol metabolites (FCMs). Five Sudanese dromedaries, two males and three females, were injected with a synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) analogue. Blood samples were collected pre- and post-ACTH injection.

Increased immunoreactive 11-ketotestosterone concentrations in sheep feces after acth challenge.

11-Oxoetiocholanolone and related substances are important metabolites of cortisol and are excreted via feces in ruminants. To investigate whether 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) or its immunoreactive metabolites are formed and excreted in ruminant feces, an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) was developed and validated. The antibody was raised in rabbits against 11-KT-3-CMO:bovine serum albumin with biotinylated 11-KT as a label.

Cortisol release, heart rate and heart rate variability in the horse and its rider: different responses to training and performance.

Although some information exists on the stress response of horses in equestrian sports, the horse-rider team is much less well understood. In this study, salivary cortisol concentrations, heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV), SDRR (standard deviation of beat-to-beat interval) and RMSSD (root mean square of successive beat-to-beat intervals) were analysed in horses and their riders (n=6 each) at a public performance and an identical rehearsal that was not open to the public. Cortisol concentrations increased in both horses and riders (P<0.

Trans-generational effects of prenatal stress in quail.

The prenatal environment is a source of phenotypic variability influencing the animal's characteristics. Prenatal stress affects not only the development of offspring, but also that of the following generation. Such effects have been best documented in mammals but can also be observed in birds, suggesting common processes across phylogenetic orders.

Impact of ozonation on ecotoxicity and endocrine activity of tertiary treated wastewater effluent.

Tertiary wastewater treatment plant effluent before and after ozonation (0.6-1.1g O₃/g DOC) was tested for aquatic ecotoxicity in a battery of standardised microbioassays with green algae, daphnids, and zebrafish eggs.

Geographical variation in egg mass and egg content in a passerine bird.

Reproductive, phenotypic and life-history traits in many animal and plant taxa show geographic variation, indicating spatial variation in selection regimes. Maternal deposition to avian eggs, such as hormones, antibodies and antioxidants, critically affect development of the offspring, with long-lasting effects on the phenotype and fitness. Little is however known about large-scale geographical patterns of variation in maternal deposition to eggs.

Yolk hormones and sexual conflict over parental investment in the pied flycatcher.

Female birds might be able to manipulate the parental effort of their male partner through elevated transfer of hormones to the eggs, since these hormones affect many chick traits that males might use as cues for adjusting the level of their investment. We experimentally studied whether female pied flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca could manipulate male investment via yolk androgens. There is much more variation in yolk androgen levels between females than within clutches, and in order to change the androgen levels of the eggs, we swapped whole clutches between nests.

A place to hide in the home-cage decreases yolk androgen levels and offspring emotional reactivity in Japanese quail.

An animal's emotional responses are the result of its cognitive appraisal of a situation. This appraisal is notably influenced by the possibility of an individual to exert control over an aversive event. Although the fact that environment controllability decreases emotional responses in animals is well established, far less is known about its potential trans-generational effects.

Stress affects salivary alpha-Amylase activity in bonobos.

Salivary alpha-Amylase (sAA) is a starch digesting enzyme. In addition to its function in the context of nutrition, sAA has also turned out to be useful for monitoring sympathetic nervous system activity. Recent studies on humans have found a relationship between intra-individual changes in sAA activity and physical and psychological stress.