Fecal steroid hormones reveal reproductive state in female blue whales sampled in the Gulf of California, Mexico.

Autor: Valenzuela-Molina M; Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Av. Instituto Politécnico Nacional s/n Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, C.P. 23096 La Paz, B.C.S., Mexico., Atkinson S; University of Alaska, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, 17101 Pt. Lena Loop Road, Juneau, AK 99801, USA., Mashburn K; University of Alaska, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, 17101 Pt. Lena Loop Road, Juneau, AK 99801, USA., Gendron D; Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Av. Instituto Politécnico Nacional s/n Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, C.P. 23096 La Paz, B.C.S., Mexico. Electronic address: dianegendroncicimar@gmail.com., Brownell RL Jr; Southwest Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, 34500 Highway 1, Monterey, CA 09394, USA.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: General and comparative endocrinology [Gen Comp Endocrinol] 2018 May 15; Vol. 261, pp. 127-135. Date of Electronic Publication: 2018 Feb 21.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2018.02.015
Abstrakt: Steroid hormone assessment using non-invasive sample collection techniques can reveal the reproductive status of aquatic mammals and the physiological mechanisms by which they respond to changes in their environment. A portion of the eastern North Pacific blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) population that seasonally visits the Gulf of California, Mexico has been monitored using photo-identified individuals for over 30 years. The whales use the area in winter-early spring for nursing their calves and feeding and it therefore is well suited for fecal sample collection. Using radioimmunoassays in 25 fecal samples collected between 2009 and 2012 to determine reproductive state and stress, we validated three steroid hormones (progesterone, corticosterone and cortisol) in adult female blue whales. Females that were categorized as pregnant had higher mean fecal progesterone metabolite concentrations (1292.6 ± 415.6 ng·g -1 ) than resting and lactating females (14.0 ± 3.7 ng·g -1 ; 23.0 ± 5.4 ng·g -1 , respectively). Females classified as pregnant also had higher concentrations of corticosterone metabolites (37.5 ± 9.9 ng·g -1 ) than resting and lactating females (17.4 ± 2.0 ng·g -1 ; 16.8 ± 2.8 ng·g -1 , respectively). In contrast, cortisol metabolite concentrations showed high variability between groups and no significant relationship to reproductive state. We successfully determined preliminary baseline parameters of key steroid hormones by reproductive state in adult female blue whales. The presence of pregnant or with luteal activity and known lactating females confirms that the Gulf of California is an important winter-spring area for the reproductive phase of these blue whales. The baseline corticosterone levels we are developing will be useful for assessing the impact of the increasing coastal development and whale-watching activities on the whales in the Gulf of California.
(Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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