Physiological and laboratory validation of enzyme immunoassay to meassure fecal metabolites of glycocorticoids of black-ear-tufted-marmoset (Callithrix penicillata) in captivity

• Grant number: 10/13379-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): January 01, 2011
• Effective date (End): December 31, 2011
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Reproduction
• Principal Investigator: Cristiane Schilbach Pizzutto
• Grantee: Luciana Martins Rodrigues Guerra
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Recent improvements in the quality of life of wild animals in captivity, called for the development of tools that offer quantitative measurements of animal well-being. The adrenal gland plays an important role in the response to stressful stimulation causing changes in serum levels of glucocorticoids (GCO). The association of behavioral assessment and hormone assessment may help to determine possible correlations between well-being and stress. . Traditionally hormone assessment is carried out by dosing hormone levels in the serum, which requires restraining of animals and vein puncture. These procedures are stressful for wild species and may potentially interfere with the results. For this reason, non-invasive techniques have been developed for measuring hormone metabolites in the feces, which avoids restraining or other painful procedures. The aim of this study is the physiological and laboratory validation of the enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for measurement of fecal glucocortisol metabolites in black-ear-tufted-marmoset (Callithrix penicillata). For the purpose of physiological validation we will administer ACTH to three couples to evaluate the profile of fecal CGO metabolites. Control treatments consist of the administration of saline solution to the same animals one week after collection of samples for CGO assessment. For the purpose of laboratory validation we will use the parallel test comparing the dilution curve of the standard essay and the curve obtained for the same dilution of a pool of fecal sample. (AU)