easonal changes in steroid and thyroid hormone content in shed skins of the tegu lizard Salvator meriana

Autor(es)

Zena, Lucas A. ^{[1, 2, 3]} ; Dillon, Danielle ^[2] ; Hunt, Kathleen E. ^{[4, 5]} ; Navas, Carlos A. ^[3] ; Bicego, Kenia C. ^[1] ; Buck, C. Loren ^[2]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Sao Paulo State Univ, Coll Agr & Vet Sci, Dept Anim Morphol & Physiol, BR-14884900 Jaboticabal, SP - Brazil

^[2] No Arizona Univ, Dept Biol Sci, Box 5640, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 - USA

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biosci, Dept Physiol, Rua Matao 14, BR-05508090 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[4] George Mason Univ, Dept Biol, Fairfax, VA 22030 - USA

^[5] George Mason Univ, Smithsonian Mason Sch Conservat, Fairfax, VA 22030 - USA

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY B-BIOCHEMICAL SYSTEMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL; v. 192, n. 1 AUG 2021.
• Citações Web of Science: 0

Resumo

Sampling blood for endocrine analysis from some species may not be practical or ethical. Quantification of hormones extracted from nontypical sample types, such as keratinized tissues, offers a less invasive alternative to the traditional collection and analysis of blood. Here, we aimed to validate assays by using parallelism and accuracy tests for quantification of testosterone, corticosterone, progesterone, and triiodothyronine (T-3) in shed skins of tegu lizards. We assessed whether hormone content of sheds varied across one year similar to what was previously detected in plasma samples. In addition, we aimed to identify the phase relationship between hormone levels of shed skin and plasma levels obtained from the same animals. High frequency of shedding occurred during the active season for tegus (spring/summer), while shedding ceased during hibernation (winter). All hormones measured in shed skins exhibited seasonal changes in concentration. Levels of testosterone in shed skins of male tegus correlated positively with plasma testosterone levels, while corticosterone in both males and females exhibited an inverse relationship between sample types for the same month of collection. An inverse relationship was found when accounting for a lag time of 3 and 4 months between sheds and plasma testosterone. These results indicate that endocrine content of sheds may be confounded by factors (i.e., seasons, environmental temperature, thermoregulatory behavior, among others) that affect frequency of molting, skin blood perfusion, and therefore hormone transfer from the bloodstream and deposition in sheds of squamates. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/16320-7 - Impactos das mudanças climáticas e ambientais sobre a fauna: uma abordagem integrativa
• Beneficiário: Carlos Arturo Navas Iannini
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa de Pesquisa sobre Mudanças Climáticas Globais - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 17/01652-2 - Fisiologia sazonal no lagarto teiú Salvator merianae: um modelo animal para avaliar funções fisiológicas em ambientes dinâmicos e em constante alteração
• Beneficiário: Lucas Aparecido Zena
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 18/06192-2 - Fisiologia sazonal no lagarto teiú Salvator merianae: um modelo animal para avaliar funções fisiológicas em ambientes dinâmicos e em constante alteração
• Beneficiário: Lucas Aparecido Zena
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Exterior - Estágio de Pesquisa - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 15/04849-6 - Participação dos canais TRPV4 na termorregulação de endotermos
• Beneficiário: Kênia Cardoso Bícego
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular