Fecal thyroid hormone metabolites in wild ungulates: a mini-review

Pasciu, Valeria; Nieddu, Maria; Sotgiu, Francesca Daniela; Baralla, Elena; Berlinguer, Fiammetta

doi:10.3389/fvets.2024.1407479

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 51 publications

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“…Other endocrine biomarkers include thyroid hormones, which function to increase basal metabolic rate, make more glucose available to cells, stimulate protein synthesis, increase lipid metabolism and stimulate cardiac and neural functions ( Pasciu et al ., 2022 , 2024 ). Thyroid hormones are activated by the hypothalamic–pituitary–thyroid axis, resulting in the production of tetraiodothyronine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) from thyroid follicles ( Behringer et al ., 2018 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adrenal and metabolic hormones demonstrate risk–reward trade-offs for African elephants foraging in human-dominated landscapes

Oduor,

Gichuki,

Brown

et al. 2024

Conservation Physiology

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A key driver of the African savannah elephant population decline is the loss of habitat and associated human–elephant conflict. Elephant physiological responses to these pressures, however, are largely unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we evaluated faecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentrations as an indicator of adrenal activity and faecal thyroid metabolite (fT3) concentrations as an indicator of metabolic activity in relation to land use, livestock density, and human landscape modification, while controlling for the effects of seasonality and primary productivity (measured using the normalized difference vegetation index). Our best-fit model found that fGCM concentrations to be elevated during the dry season, in areas with higher human modification index values, and those with more agropastoral activities and livestock. There was also a negative relationship between primary productivity and fGCM concentrations. We found fT3 concentrations to be higher during the wet season, in agropastoral landscapes, in locations with higher human activity, and in areas with no livestock. This study highlights how elephants balance nutritional rewards and risks in foraging decisions when using human-dominated landscapes, results that can serve to better interpret elephant behaviour at the human–wildlife interface and contribute to more insightful conservation strategies.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adrenal and metabolic hormones demonstrate risk–reward trade-offs for African elephants foraging in human-dominated landscapes

Oduor,

Gichuki,

Brown

et al. 2024

Conservation Physiology

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Validation of a triiodothyronine (T3) ELISA for mouse fecal samples

Thompson,

Coulter,

VanPutte

2024

Physiological Reports

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Acquiring sufficient blood for hormone analysis in mice can be a limiting step. Hormone analysis techniques using non‐invasive sample collection have been vigorously developed for endangered species, from whom blood sampling is prohibited, or from species that are otherwise difficult to handle in a laboratory setting. Because there are interactions between glucocorticoids and thyroid hormones (T3 and T4), reducing the animal's “distress” during sample collection is imperative. Measurement of fecal T3 provides less sensitive, baseline information regarding thyroid function while permitting a non‐invasive technique for more frequent sampling. We demonstrated that using a methanol extraction protocol produced the most reliable fecal T3 measurement in an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We found that during a thyroid hormone‐treated state, fecal and plasma T3 measurements from mice are directly related, while during a methimazole‐treated state, fecal and plasma T3 measurements from mice are inversely related. Fecal samples are a useful way to monitor thyroid hormone function in laboratory mice.

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Fecal thyroid hormone metabolites in wild ungulates: a mini-review

Cited by 2 publications

References 51 publications

Adrenal and metabolic hormones demonstrate risk–reward trade-offs for African elephants foraging in human-dominated landscapes

Adrenal and metabolic hormones demonstrate risk–reward trade-offs for African elephants foraging in human-dominated landscapes

Validation of a triiodothyronine (T3) ELISA for mouse fecal samples

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