Biochemical and biological validations of a faecal glucocorticoid metabolite assay in mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx)

Lavin, Shana R.; Woodruff, Miles C; Atencia, Rebeca; Cox, Debby; Woodruff, Glenn T; Setchell, Joanna M.; Wheaton, Catharine J.

doi:10.1093/conphys/coz032

Cited by 3 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 39 publications

(76 reference statements)

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“…in other primates (e.g., Bahr et al, 2000;Fichtel et al, 2007;Heistermann et al, 2006;Lavin et al, 2019;Shutt et al, 2012) This study provides information that may be useful to those maintaining this species as a reproductive group in zoos. We provide additional information about the dominance structure of zoo-housed lion-tailed macaques.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Due to low CORT values measured here, we also tested and attempted to validate corticosterone, which may be of limited suitability in primates (Bahr et al, 2000; Heistermann et al, 2006), and cortisol metabolite assays 69a and 72t, which have been valuable in other primates (e.g., Bahr et al, 2000; Fichtel et al, 2007; Heistermann et al, 2006; Lavin et al, 2019; Shutt et al, 2012). While corticosterone and 72t did not demonstrate good parallelism to their respective standard curves and measured values were low, it is possible that we needed samples more representative of physiological challenges to validate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Using behavior and genital swellings to monitor social dynamics and track reproductive cycling in zoo‐housed lion‐tailed macaques (Macaca silenus)

Alba

Wheaton

Weibel

et al. 2022

American J Primatol

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Though lion-tailed macaques are managed ex situ as an assurance population, little information is available on the relationship between behavior and reproductive physiology to ensure successful management and evaluate welfare. To facilitate social and reproductive management in a group of one male and three female lion-tailed macaques at Disney's Animal Kingdom ® , we observed behaviors associated with dominance and reproduction, rated genital swellings, recorded menses, tracked ovarian cycles as determined by measurement of fecal immunoreactive progesterone (P4) and estradiol (E2), and monitored fecal cortisol (CORT). We analyzed the dominance hierarchy of females, compared hormone patterns of ovarian cycles with genital swellings and copulations relative to menses, and tested for correlations between hormones and behavior. The strength of the dominance hierarchy indicated moderate linearity, but relaxed after the dominant female received anxiolytic medications to reduce intraspecific aggression. Fecal P4 and E2 patterns revealed ovarian cycle lengths averaging 29.7 ± 0.8 days. The timing of singleday E2 peaks varied between and within females' cycles. However, on average, E2 peaks occurred 6-10 days after the first day of menses, with maximum genital swellings and copulations occurring slightly thereafter in uncontracepted females. Female-to-female aggression and sexual behaviors with the male were related to ovarian cycle phase, but correlations between behaviors and hormones varied between females. Initiated aggression was positively correlated with E2 in the dominant and mid-ranked females, while aggression received was positively correlated with P4 or negatively correlated with E2 in the mid-ranked and subordinate females. In one uncontracepted female, sexual behaviors with the male were negatively correlated to P4. CORT was positively correlated to aggression in the dominant and mid-ranked females and negatively correlated to grooming in the subordinate female. Results indicate observations

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using behavior and genital swellings to monitor social dynamics and track reproductive cycling in zoo‐housed lion‐tailed macaques (Macaca silenus)

Alba

Wheaton

Weibel

et al. 2022

American J Primatol

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“…Previous studies of mandrills ( Setchell et al, 2008 ) found no diurnal variation in fGCMs so we collected samples throughout the day. We processed the samples using a validated field-friendly method for hormone extraction in this species ( Lavin et al, 2019 ). We discarded samples contaminated with urine.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To our knowledge, no study has yet examined the stress response during translocation in rehabilitated primates, despite the importance of such studies in informing translocation strategies. We used a previously-validated non-invasive and field-friendly methods to measure fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) in mandrills ( Mandrillus sphinx ) ( Lavin et al, 2019 ) at each stage of a translocation: mandrills housed at the sanctuary, transferred to a pre-release enclosure and released into the forest. fGCMs are a popular physiological biomarker of the stress response, because they can be measured non-invasively and provide an integrated measure of glucocorticoid activity over a period of hours or days, in contrast to the large daily fluctuations in blood saliva or urine samples ( Whitten et al, 1998 ; Hodges and Heistermann, 2011 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Successful acclimatization of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) translocated to Conkouati-Douli National Park, Republic of Congo, as measured by fecal glucocorticoid metabolites

Woodruff

Atencia

Cox

et al. 2023

Conservation Physiology

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Translocation and reintroduction are common tools in conservation management and can be very successful. However, translocation can be stressful for the animals involved, and stress is implicated as a major cause of failure in release programs. Conservation managers should therefore seek to understand how the stages of translocation impact stress physiology in the animals involved. We quantified fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) as a noninvasive measure of response to potential stressors during a translocation of 15 mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) into Conkouati-Douli National Park, Republic of Congo. The mandrills were initially housed in a sanctuary, transferred to a pre-release enclosure in the National Park and then released into the forest. We collected repeated fecal samples (n = 1101) from known individuals and quantified fGCMs using a previously validated enzyme immunoassay. Transfer from the sanctuary to the pre-release enclosure correlated with a significant 1.93-fold increase in fGCMs, suggesting that transfer was a stressor for the mandrills. fGCM values decreased over time in the pre-release enclosure, suggesting that the mandrills recovered from the transfer and acclimatized to the enclosure. Release to the forest was not linked to a significant increase in fGCMs over the final values in the enclosure. Following release, fGCMs continued to decrease, fell below sanctuary values after just over a month and were about half the sanctuary values after 1 year. Overall, our results suggest that the translocation, although initially presenting a physiological challenge to the animals, was not detrimental to the well-being of the animals over the timescale of the study and, in fact, may have been beneficial. Our findings show the value of non-invasive physiology in monitoring, evaluating and designing wildlife translocations and, ultimately, contributing to their success.

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“…In these cases, the cortisol assay showed a higher increase after the stressor with less variation between baseline concentrations [ 96 , 97 ]. However, an EIA against 11β-hydroxyetiocholanolone was the most sensitive to detect stress after a model consisting of routine management in mandrills [ 98 ].…”

Section: Studies Where Total Steroids and Selected Glucocorticoids We...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Different Types of Glucocorticoids to Evaluate Stress and Welfare in Animals and Humans: General Concepts and Examples of Combined Use

et al. 2023

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The main glucocorticoids involved in the stress response are cortisol and cortisone in most mammals and corticosterone in birds and rodents. Therefore, these analytes are currently the biomarkers more frequently used to evaluate the physiological response to a stressful situation. In addition, “total glucocorticoids”, which refers to the quantification of various glucocorticoids by immunoassays showing cross-reactivity with different types of glucocorticoids or related metabolites, can be measured. In this review, we describe the characteristics of the main glucocorticoids used to assess stress, as well as the main techniques and samples used for their quantification. In addition, we analyse the studies where at least two of the main glucocorticoids were measured in combination. Overall, this review points out the different behaviours of the main glucocorticoids, depending on the animal species and stressful stimuli, and shows the potential advantages that the measurement of at least two different glucocorticoid types can have for evaluating welfare.

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Biochemical and biological validations of a faecal glucocorticoid metabolite assay in mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx)

Cited by 3 publications

References 39 publications

Using behavior and genital swellings to monitor social dynamics and track reproductive cycling in zoo‐housed lion‐tailed macaques (Macaca silenus)

Using behavior and genital swellings to monitor social dynamics and track reproductive cycling in zoo‐housed lion‐tailed macaques (Macaca silenus)

Successful acclimatization of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) translocated to Conkouati-Douli National Park, Republic of Congo, as measured by fecal glucocorticoid metabolites

Different Types of Glucocorticoids to Evaluate Stress and Welfare in Animals and Humans: General Concepts and Examples of Combined Use

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