Further refinement of the non-invasive procedure for measuring steroid production in the male three-spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus.

Measurement of steroids that are released into the water via the gills has previously been shown to be an effective way of studying the reproductive endocrinology of the male three-spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus without having to kill the fish. In the present paper, a previous observation on the existence of a compound other than 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) in water, which cross-reacted in the 11-KT radioimmunoassay was repeated. The amounts of this compound, however, were not sufficient to warrant a separation step prior to carrying out assay. The lack of association between androstenedione levels in water and those in plasma was also confirmed. For the first time, the amounts of testosterone released into the water were shown to be positively correlated with the amounts in plasma, the sampling procedure (placing the fish for 30 min in 50 ml water) had no effect on the rate of release of cortisol but caused a rapid drop in the rate of release of 11-KT (which means that the fish should not be sampled twice in short succession), physical interaction between two nesting males (which was accompanied by aggression) significantly increased the rate of release of 11-KT, androstenedione and testosterone (but not of cortisol) and the rate of release of 11-KT was at its maximum between 2 and 4 h after exposure.

[1]  D. Hodgson,et al.  The organophosphorous pesticide, fenitrothion, acts as an anti-androgen and alters reproductive behavior of the male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus , 2009, Ecotoxicology.

[2]  I. Katsiadaki,et al.  The model anti-androgen flutamide suppresses the expression of typical male stickleback reproductive behaviour. , 2008, Aquatic toxicology.

[3]  Y. Hsu,et al.  Reciprocity between endocrine state and contest behavior in the killifish, Kryptolebias marmoratus , 2008, Hormones and Behavior.

[4]  R. Earley,et al.  Measuring water-borne cortisol in convict cichlids (Amatitlania nigrofasciata): is the procedure a stressor? , 2008 .

[5]  Rui F. Oliveira,et al.  Non-invasive measurement of steroids in fish-holding water: important considerations when applying the procedure to behaviour studies , 2008 .

[6]  I. Katsiadaki,et al.  Non-invasive measurement of 11-ketotestosterone, cortisol and androstenedione in male three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). , 2007, General and comparative endocrinology.

[7]  S. Balshine,et al.  Male and female cooperatively breeding fish provide support for the "Challenge Hypothesis" , 2006 .

[8]  M. Taborsky,et al.  A test of the ‘challenge hypothesis’ in cichlid fish: simulated partner and territory intruder experiments , 2004, Animal Behaviour.

[9]  Ø. Øverli,et al.  Short-Term Effects of Fights for Social Dominance and the Establishment of Dominant-Subordinate Relationships on Brain Monoamines and Cortisol in Rainbow Trout , 1999, Brain, Behavior and Evolution.

[10]  A. Scott,et al.  Female rainbow trout urine contains a pheromone which causes a rapid rise in plasma 17,20β‐dihydroxy‐4‐pregnen‐3‐one levels and milt amounts in males , 1997 .

[11]  P. Sorensen,et al.  Effect of dominance status on sex hormone levels in laboratory and wild-spawning male trout. , 1996, General and comparative endocrinology.

[12]  Rui F. Oliveira,et al.  Social Modulation of Sex Steroid Concentrations in the Urine of Male Cichlid FishOreochromis mossambicus , 1996, Hormones and Behavior.

[13]  N. Pankhurst,et al.  Relationship of population density, territorial interaction and plasma levels of gonadal steroids in spawning male demoiselles Chromis dispilus (Pisces: Pomacentridae). , 1993, General and comparative endocrinology.

[14]  J. Wingfield,et al.  The "Challenge Hypothesis": Theoretical Implications for Patterns of Testosterone Secretion, Mating Systems, and Breeding Strategies , 1990, The American Naturalist.

[15]  R. Schulz,et al.  Conversion of 11-ketoandrostenedione to 11-ketotestosterone by blood cells of six fish species. , 1990, General and comparative endocrinology.

[16]  R. Hannes,et al.  Blood and whole‐body androgen levels of male swordtails correlated with aggression measures in a standard‐opponent test , 1986 .