1
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Kriengwatana BP, Marshall CJ, Stevenson T, Monaghan P. Early life conditions reduce similarity between reproductive partners in HPA axis response to stress. Horm Behav 2024; 162:105508. [PMID: 38513527 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2024.105508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
Social environments modulate endocrine function, yet it is unclear whether individuals can become like their social partners in how they physiologically respond to stressors. This social transmission of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis reactivity could have long-term consequences for health and lifespan of individuals if their social partners react to stressors with an exaggerated HPA axis response. We tested whether glucocorticoid levels in response to stress of breeding partners changes after breeding depending on whether partners had similar or dissimilar postnatal conditions. We manipulated postnatal conditions by mimicking early life stress in zebra finch chicks (Taeniopygia guttata) via postnatal corticosterone exposure. When they reached adulthood, we created breeding pairs where the female and male had experienced either the same or different early life hormonal treatment (corticosterone or control). Before and after breeding, we obtained blood samples within 3 min and after 10 min or 30 min of restraint stress (baseline, cort10, cort30). We found that corticosterone levels of individuals in response to restraint were affected by their own and their partner's early life conditions, but did not change after breeding. However, across all pairs, partners became more similar in cort30 levels after breeding, although differences between partners in cort10 remained greater in pairs with a corticosterone-treated female. Thus, we show that HPA axis response to stressors in adulthood can be modulated by reproductive partners and that similarity between partners is reduced when females are postnatally exposed to elevated glucocorticoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Buddhamas P Kriengwatana
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
| | - Christopher J Marshall
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
| | - Tyler Stevenson
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
| | - Pat Monaghan
- Institute for Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
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2
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Sepers B, Verhoeven KJF, van Oers K. Early developmental carry-over effects on exploratory behaviour and DNA methylation in wild great tits ( Parus major). Evol Appl 2024; 17:e13664. [PMID: 38487391 PMCID: PMC10937296 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Adverse, postnatal conditions experienced during development are known to induce lingering effects on morphology, behaviour, reproduction and survival. Despite the importance of early developmental stress for shaping the adult phenotype, it is largely unknown which molecular mechanisms allow for the induction and maintenance of such phenotypic effects once the early environmental conditions are released. Here we aimed to investigate whether lasting early developmental phenotypic changes are associated with post-developmental DNA methylation changes. We used a cross-foster and brood size experiment in great tit (Parus major) nestlings, which induced post-fledging effects on biometric measures and exploratory behaviour, a validated personality trait. We investigated whether these post-fledging effects are associated with DNA methylation levels of CpG sites in erythrocyte DNA. Individuals raised in enlarged broods caught up on their developmental delay after reaching independence and became more explorative as days since fledging passed, while the exploratory scores of individuals that were raised in reduced broods remained stable. Although we previously found that brood enlargement hardly affected the pre-fledging methylation levels, we found 420 CpG sites that were differentially methylated between fledged individuals that were raised in small versus large sized broods. A considerable number of the affected CpG sites were located in or near genes involved in metabolism, growth, behaviour and cognition. Since the biological functions of these genes line up with the observed post-fledging phenotypic effects of brood size, our results suggest that DNA methylation provides organisms the opportunity to modulate their condition once the environmental conditions allow it. In conclusion, this study shows that nutritional stress imposed by enlarged brood size during early development associates with variation in DNA methylation later in life. We propose that treatment-associated DNA methylation differences may arise in relation to pre- or post-fledging phenotypic changes, rather than that they are directly induced by the environment during early development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernice Sepers
- Department of Animal EcologyNetherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW)WageningenThe Netherlands
- Behavioural Ecology GroupWageningen University & Research (WUR)WageningenThe Netherlands
- Department of Animal BehaviourBielefeld UniversityBielefeldGermany
| | - Koen J. F. Verhoeven
- Department of Terrestrial EcologyNetherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW)WageningenThe Netherlands
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal EcologyNetherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW)WageningenThe Netherlands
- Behavioural Ecology GroupWageningen University & Research (WUR)WageningenThe Netherlands
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3
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Siller Wilks SJ, Heidinger BJ, Westneat DF, Solomon J, Rubenstein DR. The impact of parental and developmental stress on DNA methylation in the avian hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Mol Ecol 2024; 33:e17291. [PMID: 38343177 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2023] [Revised: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis coordinates an organism's response to environmental stress. The responsiveness and sensitivity of an offspring's stress response may be shaped not only by stressors encountered in their early post-natal environment but also by stressors in their parent's environment. Yet, few studies have considered how stressors encountered in both of these early life environments may function together to impact the developing HPA axis. Here, we manipulated stressors in the parental and post-natal environments in a population of house sparrows (Passer domesticus) to assess their impact on changes in DNA methylation (and corresponding gene expression) in a suite of genes within the HPA axis. We found that nestlings that experienced early life stress across both life-history periods had higher DNA methylation in a critical HPA axis gene, the glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1). In addition, we found that the life-history stage when stress was encountered impacted some genes (HSD11B1, NR3C1 and NR3C2) differently. We also found evidence for the mitigation of parental stress by post-natal stress (in HSD11B1 and NR3C2). Finally, by assessing DNA methylation in both the brain and blood, we were able to evaluate cross-tissue patterns. While some differentially methylated regions were tissue-specific, we found cross-tissue changes in NR3C2 and NR3C1, suggesting that blood is a suitable tissue for assessing DNA methylation as a biomarker of early life stress. Our results provide a crucial first step in understanding the mechanisms by which early life stress in different life-history periods contributes to changes in the epigenome of the HPA axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie J Siller Wilks
- Department of Ecology Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA
| | - Britt J Heidinger
- Biological Sciences Department, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
| | - David F Westneat
- Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
| | - Joseph Solomon
- Department of Ecology Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA
| | - Dustin R Rubenstein
- Department of Ecology Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA
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4
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Rubalcaba JG, Jimeno B. Body temperature and activity patterns modulate glucocorticoid levels across lizard species: A macrophysiological approach. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.1032083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Environmental and intrinsic factors interact to determine energy requirements in vertebrates. Glucocorticoid hormones (GCs) are key mediators of this interaction, as they fluctuate with energetic demands and regulate physiological and behavioral responses to environmental challenges. While a great body of research has focused on GC variation among individuals, the mechanisms driving GC variation across species and at broad spatial scales remain largely unexplored. Here, we adopted a macrophysiological approach to investigate the environmental factors and life-history traits driving variation in baseline GCs across lizard species. We tested three hypotheses: (1) If GCs increase with body temperature to meet higher metabolic demand, we expect an association between average baseline GCs and the mean species’ body temperature in the field (GC-temperature dependence hypothesis); (2) If GCs mediate behavioral responses to avoid thermal extremes, we expect that individuals frequently exposed to extreme conditions exhibit higher baseline GC levels (Behavioral thermoregulation hypothesis); (3) If GCs increase to support higher energy demands in active foragers during their period of activity, we expect that active foraging species have higher baseline GCs than sit-and-wait foragers, and that GC levels increase in relation to the duration of daily activity windows (Activity hypothesis). We used biophysical models to calculate operative temperatures and the activity patterns of lizards in sun-exposed and shaded microenvironments. Then, we tested the association between baseline GCs, body temperature, operative temperatures, foraging mode, and activity windows across 37 lizard species, using data from HormoneBase. Our comparative analyses showed that variation in baseline GCs was primarily related to the mean field body temperature and foraging mode, with higher baseline GCs in active foragers with higher body temperatures. Our results suggest that body temperature and foraging mode drive GC variation through their effects on energy requirements across lizard species.
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5
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Westrick SE, van Kesteren F, Boutin S, Lane JE, McAdam AG, Dantzer B. Maternal glucocorticoids have minimal effects on HPA axis activity and behavior of juvenile wild North American red squirrels. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:jeb.236620. [PMID: 33795416 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.236620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2020] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
As a response to environmental cues, maternal glucocorticoids (GCs) may trigger adaptive developmental plasticity in the physiology and behavior of offspring. In North American red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), mothers exhibit increased GCs when conspecific density is elevated, and selection favors more aggressive and perhaps more active mothers under these conditions. We tested the hypothesis that elevated maternal GCs cause shifts in offspring behavior that may prepare them for high-density conditions. We experimentally elevated maternal GCs during gestation or early lactation. We measured two behavioral traits (activity and aggression) in weaned offspring using standardized behavioral assays. Because maternal GCs may influence offspring hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dynamics, which may in turn affect behavior, we also measured the impact of our treatments on offspring HPA axis dynamics (adrenal reactivity and negative feedback), and the association between offspring HPA axis dynamics and behavior. Increased maternal GCs during lactation, but not gestation, slightly elevated activity levels in offspring. Offspring aggression and adrenal reactivity did not differ between treatment groups. Male, but not female, offspring from mothers treated with GCs during pregnancy exhibited stronger negative feedback compared with those from control mothers, but there were no differences in negative feedback between lactation treatment groups. Offspring with higher adrenal reactivity from mothers treated during pregnancy (both controls and GC-treated) exhibited lower aggression and activity. These results suggest that maternal GCs during gestation or early lactation alone may not be a sufficient cue to produce substantial changes in behavioral and physiological stress responses in offspring in natural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Westrick
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI48109-1043, USA
| | - Freya van Kesteren
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI48109-1043, USA
| | - Stan Boutin
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6G 2E9
| | - Jeffrey E Lane
- Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, S7N 5E2
| | - Andrew G McAdam
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0334, USA
| | - Ben Dantzer
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI48109-1043, USA.,Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1085, USA
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6
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Grace JK, Parenteau C, Angelier F. Post-natal corticosterone exposure downregulates the HPA axis through adulthood in a common passerine. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2020; 292:113421. [PMID: 32032605 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2020.113421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2019] [Revised: 01/29/2020] [Accepted: 02/03/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal (HPA) axis is one of the most important physiological mechanisms for mediating life-history trade-offs by reallocating resources to immediate survival from other life-history components during a perturbation. Early-life stressor experience and associated upregulation of glucocorticoids can induce short- and long-term changes to the HPA axis in ways that may optimize survival and/or reproduction for the expected adult environment. Although short-term changes to the HPA axis following perinatal stress are well documented, we know less about the long-term effects of early-life stress especially for non-mammalian wild species. Here, we determined long-term effects of experimental post-natal increases in a circulating glucocorticoid on the HPA axis in a common passerine bird, the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). We manipulated circulating corticosterone in wild, free-living nestlings, transferred fledglings to captivity and assessed corticosterone response to a standardized capture-restraint protocol at the pre-fledging, juvenile, and adult stages. Early-life corticosterone manipulation was associated with depressed baseline and stress-induced concentrations of corticosterone at all stages of life, through adulthood. These results provide rare evidence for the effects of early-life stressor experiences through adulthood, with important implications for understanding developmental programming of an endocrine mediator of life history trade-offs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacquelyn K Grace
- Dept. of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique-Université de la Rochelle, UMR 7372, F-79360 Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique-Université de la Rochelle, UMR 7372, F-79360 Villiers en Bois, France
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7
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Beaugeard E, Brischoux F, Henry P, Parenteau C, Trouvé C, Angelier F. Does urbanization cause stress in wild birds during development? Insights from feather corticosterone levels in juvenile house sparrows ( Passer domesticus). Ecol Evol 2019; 9:640-652. [PMID: 30680144 PMCID: PMC6342122 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2018] [Revised: 10/24/2018] [Accepted: 10/29/2018] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Urban landscapes are associated with abiotic and biotic environmental changes that may result in potential stressors for wild vertebrates. Urban exploiters have physiological, morphological, and behavioral adaptations to live in cities. However, there is increasing evidence that urban exploiters themselves can suffer from urban conditions, especially during specific life-history stages. We looked for a link between the degree of urbanization and the level of developmental stress in an urban exploiter (the house sparrow, Passer domesticus), which has recently been declining in multiple European cities (e.g., London, UK). Specifically, we conducted a large-scale study and sampled juvenile sparrows in 11 urban and rural sites to evaluate their feather corticosterone (CORT) levels. We found that juvenile feather CORT levels were positively correlated with the degree of urbanization, supporting the idea that developing house sparrows may suffer from urban environmental conditions. However, we did not find any correlation between juvenile feather CORT levels and body size, mass, or body condition. This suggests either that the growth and condition of urban sparrows are not impacted by elevated developmental CORT levels, or that urban sparrows may compensate for developmental constraints once they have left the nest. Although feather CORT levels were not correlated with baseline CORT levels, we found that feather CORT levels were slightly and positively correlated with the CORT stress response in juveniles. This suggests that urban developmental conditions may potentially have long-lasting effects on stress physiology and stress sensitivity in this urban exploiter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erika Beaugeard
- Centre d’Études Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - François Brischoux
- Centre d’Études Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - Pierre‐Yves Henry
- Centre de Recherches sur la Biologie des Populations d’Oiseaux (CRBPO)CESCO UMR 7204 Sorbonne Universités‐MNHN‐CNRS‐UPMCParisFrance
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d’Études Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - Colette Trouvé
- Centre d’Études Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d’Études Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC)UMR 7372 CNRS‐Université de La RochelleVilliers‐en‐BoisFrance
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8
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Gott A, Andrews C, Bedford T, Nettle D, Bateson M. Developmental history and stress responsiveness are related to response inhibition, but not judgement bias, in a cohort of European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). Anim Cogn 2018; 22:99-111. [PMID: 30467655 PMCID: PMC6327078 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-018-1226-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2018] [Revised: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Judgement bias tasks are designed to provide markers of affective states. A recent study of European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) demonstrated modest familial effects on judgement bias performance, and found that adverse early experience and developmental telomere attrition (an integrative marker of biological age) both affected judgement bias. Other research has shown that corticosterone levels affect judgement bias. Here, we investigated judgement bias using a modified Go/No Go task in a new cohort of starlings (n = 31) hand-reared under different early-life conditions. We also measured baseline corticosterone and the corticosterone response to acute stress in the same individuals. We found evidence for familial effects on judgement bias, of a similar magnitude to the previous study. We found no evidence that developmental treatments or developmental telomere attrition were related to judgement bias per se. We did, however, find that birds that experienced the most benign developmental conditions, and birds with the greatest developmental telomere attrition, were significantly faster to probe the learned unrewarded stimulus. We also found that the birds whose corticosterone levels were faster to return towards baseline after an acute stressor were slower to probe the learned unrewarded stimulus. Our results illustrate the potential complexities of relationships between early-life experience, stress and affectively mediated decision making. For judgement bias tasks, they demonstrate the importance of clearly distinguishing factors that affect patterns of responding to the learned stimuli (i.e. response inhibition in the case of the Go/No Go design) from factors that influence judgements under ambiguity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annie Gott
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution and Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
| | - Clare Andrews
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution and Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
| | - Tom Bedford
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution and Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
| | - Daniel Nettle
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution and Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK.
| | - Melissa Bateson
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution and Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
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Hardt BM, Ardia DR, Bashaw MJ, Rivers JW. Experimental brood enlargement differentially influences the magnitude of the corticosterone stress response in closely related, co‐occurring songbirds. Funct Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Braelei M. Hardt
- Department of Fisheries and WildlifeOregon State University Corvallis Oregon
| | - Daniel R. Ardia
- Department of BiologyFranklin & Marshall College Lancaster Pennsylvania
| | - Meredith J. Bashaw
- Department of PsychologyFranklin & Marshall College Lancaster Pennsylvania
| | - James W. Rivers
- Department of Forest Ecosystems and SocietyOregon State University Corvallis Oregon
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10
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Jimeno B, Hau M, Verhulst S. Glucocorticoid-temperature association is shaped by foraging costs in individual zebra finches. J Exp Biol 2018; 221:jeb.187880. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.187880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2018] [Accepted: 10/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Glucocorticoid (GC) levels vary with environmental conditions, but the functional interpretation of GC variation remains contentious. A primary function is thought to be metabolic, mobilizing body reserves to match energetic demands. This view is supported by temperature-dependent GC levels, although reports of this effect show unexplained heterogeneity. We hypothesised that the temperature effect on GC concentrations will depend on food availability through its effect on the energy spent to gather the food needed for thermoregulation. We tested this hypothesis in zebra finches living in outdoor aviaries with manipulated foraging conditions (i.e. easy vs. hard), by relating within-individual differences in baseline GCs between consecutive years to differences in ambient temperature. In agreement with our hypothesis, we found the GC-temperature association to be significantly steeper in the hard foraging environment. This supports the metabolic explanation of GC variation, underlining the importance of accounting for variation in energy expenditure when interpreting GC variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blanca Jimeno
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Michaela Hau
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- University of Konstanz, Germany
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
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11
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Andrews C, Nettle D, Larriva M, Gillespie R, Reichert S, Brilot BO, Bedford T, Monaghan P, Spencer KA, Bateson M. A marker of biological age explains individual variation in the strength of the adult stress response. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2017; 4:171208. [PMID: 28989794 PMCID: PMC5627134 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2017] [Accepted: 08/31/2017] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
The acute stress response functions to prioritize behavioural and physiological processes that maximize survival in the face of immediate threat. There is variation between individuals in the strength of the adult stress response that is of interest in both evolutionary biology and medicine. Age is an established source of this variation-stress responsiveness diminishes with increasing age in a range of species-but unexplained variation remains. Since individuals of the same chronological age may differ markedly in their pace of biological ageing, we asked whether biological age-measured here via erythrocyte telomere length-predicts variation in stress responsiveness in adult animals of the same chronological age. We studied two cohorts of European starlings in which we had previously manipulated the rate of biological ageing by experimentally altering the competition experienced by chicks in the fortnight following hatching. We predicted that individuals with greater developmental telomere attrition, and hence greater biological age, would show an attenuated corticosterone (CORT) response to an acute stressor when tested as adults. In both cohorts, we found that birds with greater developmental telomere attrition had lower peak CORT levels and a more negative change in CORT levels between 15 and 30 min following stress exposure. Our results, therefore, provide strong evidence that a measure of biological age explains individual variation in stress responsiveness: birds that were biologically older were less stress responsive. Our results provide a novel explanation for the phenomenon of developmental programming of the stress response: observed changes in stress physiology as a result of exposure to early-life adversity may reflect changes in ageing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare Andrews
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience and Newcastle University Institute of Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Daniel Nettle
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience and Newcastle University Institute of Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Maria Larriva
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Robert Gillespie
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Sophie Reichert
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield, UK
| | - Ben O. Brilot
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience and Newcastle University Institute of Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, Plymouth University, Plymouth, UK
| | - Thomas Bedford
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience and Newcastle University Institute of Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Pat Monaghan
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Karen A. Spencer
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Melissa Bateson
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience and Newcastle University Institute of Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- Author for correspondence: Melissa Bateson e-mail:
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12
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Jimeno B, Briga M, Verhulst S, Hau M. Effects of developmental conditions on glucocorticoid concentrations in adulthood depend on sex and foraging conditions. Horm Behav 2017; 93:175-183. [PMID: 28576645 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.05.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2017] [Revised: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/28/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Developmental conditions in early life frequently have long-term consequences on the adult phenotype, but the adult environment can modulate such long-term effects. Glucocorticoid hormones may be instrumental in mediating developmental effects, but the permanency of such endocrine changes is still debated. Here, we manipulated environmental conditions during development (small vs. large brood size, and hence sibling competition) and in adulthood (easy vs. hard foraging conditions) in a full factorial design in zebra finches, and studied effects on baseline (Bas-CORT) and stress-induced (SI-CORT) corticosterone in adulthood. Treatments affected Bas-CORT in females, but not in males. Females reared in small broods had intermediate Bas-CORT levels as adults, regardless of foraging conditions in adulthood, while females reared in large broods showed higher Bas-CORT levels in hard foraging conditions and lower levels in easy foraging conditions. Female Bas-CORT was also more susceptible than male Bas-CORT to non-biological variables, such as ambient temperature. In line with these results, repeatability of Bas-CORT was higher in males (up to 51%) than in females (25%). SI-CORT was not responsive to the experimental manipulations in either sex and its repeatability was high in both sexes. We conclude that Bas-CORT responsiveness to intrinsic and extrinsic conditions is higher in females than in males, and that the expression of developmental conditions may depend on the adult environment. The latter finding illustrates the critical importance of studying of causes and consequences of long-term developmental effects in other environments in addition to standard laboratory conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blanca Jimeno
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747, AG, Groningen, The Netherlands; Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Straße, 82319 Starnberg, Germany.
| | - Michael Briga
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747, AG, Groningen, The Netherlands; Present address: Department of Biology, University of Turku. 20500, Turku, Finland
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747, AG, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Michaela Hau
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Straße, 82319 Starnberg, Germany
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13
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Crino OL, Klaassen van Oorschot B, Crandell KE, Breuner CW, Tobalske BW. Flight performance in the altricial zebra finch: Developmental effects and reproductive consequences. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:2316-2326. [PMID: 28405295 PMCID: PMC5383492 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2016] [Revised: 01/02/2017] [Accepted: 01/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
The environmental conditions animals experience during development can have sustained effects on morphology, physiology, and behavior. Exposure to elevated levels of stress hormones (glucocorticoids, GCs) during development is one such condition that can have long‐term effects on animal phenotype. Many of the phenotypic effects of GC exposure during development (developmental stress) appear negative. However, there is increasing evidence that developmental stress can induce adaptive phenotypic changes. This hypothesis can be tested by examining the effect of developmental stress on fitness‐related traits. In birds, flight performance is an ideal metric to assess the fitness consequences of developmental stress. As fledglings, mastering takeoff is crucial to avoid bodily damage and escape predation. As adults, takeoff can contribute to mating and foraging success as well as escape and, thus, can affect both reproductive success and survival. We examined the effects of developmental stress on flight performance across life‐history stages in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). Specifically, we examined the effects of oral administration of corticosterone (CORT, the dominant avian glucocorticoid) during development on ground‐reaction forces and velocity during takeoff. Additionally, we tested for associations between flight performance and reproductive success in adult male zebra finches. Developmental stress had no effect on flight performance at all ages. In contrast, brood size (an unmanipulated variable) had sustained, negative effects on takeoff performance across life‐history stages with birds from small broods performing better than birds from large broods. Flight performance at 100 days posthatching predicted future reproductive success in males; the best fliers had significantly higher reproductive success. Our results demonstrate that some environmental factors experienced during development (e.g. clutch size) have stronger, more sustained effects than others (e.g. GC exposure). Additionally, our data provide the first link between flight performance and a direct measure of reproductive success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ondi L Crino
- Centre for Integrative Ecology Deakin University Geelong Vic. Australia; Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula MT USA
| | | | - Kristen E Crandell
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula MT USA; Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
| | - Creagh W Breuner
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula MT USA
| | - Bret W Tobalske
- Division of Biological Sciences University of Montana Missoula MT USA
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14
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Jimeno B, Hau M, Verhulst S. Strong association between corticosterone and temperature dependent metabolic rate in individual zebra finches. J Exp Biol 2017; 220:4426-4431. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.166124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2017] [Accepted: 09/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Glucocorticoid hormones (GCs) are often assumed to be indicators of stress. At the same time, one of their fundamental roles is to facilitate metabolic processes to accommodate changes in energetic demands. While the metabolic function of GCs is thought to be ubiquitous across vertebrates, we are not aware of experiments which tested this directly, i.e., in which metabolic rate was manipulated and measured together with GCs. We therefore tested for a relationship between plasma corticosterone (CORT, ln transformed) and metabolic rate (MR, measured using indirect calorimetry) in a between- and within-individual design in captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) of both sexes. In each individual, CORT and MR were measured at two different temperature levels: ‘warm’ (22°C) and ‘cold’ (12 °C). CORT and MR were both increased in colder compared to warmer conditions, within individuals, but also across individuals. At the between-individual level, we found a positive relationship between CORT and MR, with an accelerating slope towards higher MR and CORT values. In contrast, the within individual changes in CORT and MR in response to colder conditions were linearly correlated between individuals. The CORT-MR relationship did not differ between the sexes. Our results illustrate the importance of including variation at different levels to better understand physiological modulation. Furthermore, our findings support the interpretation of CORT variation as indicator of metabolic needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blanca Jimeno
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Michaela Hau
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- University of Konstanz, Germany
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
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15
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Pakkala JJ, Norris DR, Sedinger JS, Newman AEM. Experimental effects of early‐life corticosterone on the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis and pre‐migratory behaviour in a wild songbird. Funct Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jesse J. Pakkala
- Department of Integrative Biology University of Guelph Guelph Ontario N1G 1E4 Canada
| | - D. Ryan Norris
- Department of Integrative Biology University of Guelph Guelph Ontario N1G 1E4 Canada
| | - James S. Sedinger
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science University of Nevada Reno Nevada 89512 USA
| | - Amy E. M. Newman
- Department of Integrative Biology University of Guelph Guelph Ontario N1G 1E4 Canada
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16
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Albano N, Santiago-Quesada F, Masero JA, Sánchez-Guzmán JM, Möstl E. Immunoreactive cortisone in droppings reflect stress levels, diet and growth rate of gull-billed tern chicks. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2015; 213:74-80. [PMID: 25743158 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2015.02.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2014] [Revised: 02/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/24/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Blood levels of corticosterone have been traditionally analyzed to assess stress levels in birds; however, measuring steroid hormone metabolites in feces and droppings has gained much interest as a noninvasive technique successfully used for such purposed in vertebrates. Diet may affect these fecal metabolite levels (e.g., due to nutritional stress), however, this variable has not been taken into account in studies with chicks despite the great dietary flexibility of many avian species. In this study, we addressed for the first time this key issue and validated the technique in wild gull-billed tern chicks (Gelochelidon nilotica). Several enzyme immunoassays were used to determine the most appropriate test to measure the stress response. Subsequently, we performed an experiment in captivity to assess adrenocortical activity in gull-billed tern chicks fed with two diets: piscivorous vs. insectivorous. Finally, the relation between the chicks' growth rate and excreted immunoreactive glucocorticoid metabolites (EGMs) was also evaluated. We found the immunoreactive cortisone metabolites to be a good index of stress (as being an index of adrenocortical reactivity) in chicks of this species. Fish-fed chicks had higher levels of cortisone metabolites when comparing both concentration and total daily excreted metabolites. Within each treatment diet, cortisone metabolite levels and growth rates were negatively correlated. These findings suggest that the diet should be considered when using this technique for comparative purposes and highlight the trade-off between stress levels and chicks growth rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noelia Albano
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Zoology, University of Extremadura, Avenida de Elvas s/n, 06071 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Francisco Santiago-Quesada
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Zoology, University of Extremadura, Avenida de Elvas s/n, 06071 Badajoz, Spain.
| | - José A Masero
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Zoology, University of Extremadura, Avenida de Elvas s/n, 06071 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Juan M Sánchez-Guzmán
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Zoology, University of Extremadura, Avenida de Elvas s/n, 06071 Badajoz, Spain
| | - Erich Möstl
- Department of Biomedical Sciences-Medical Biochemistry, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, A-1210 Vienna, Austria
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17
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Crino OL, Driscoll SC, Breuner CW. Corticosterone exposure during development has sustained but not lifelong effects on body size and total and free corticosterone responses in the zebra finch. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 196:123-9. [PMID: 24188885 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2013.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2013] [Revised: 08/30/2013] [Accepted: 10/10/2013] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Animals exposed to stress during development experience sustained morphological, physiological, neurological, and behavioral consequences. For example, elevated glucocorticoids (GCs) during development can increase GC secretion in adults. Studies have examined the sustained effects of elevated developmental GCs on total GC responses, but no study to date has examined the effect of developmental stress on corticosteroid binding globulin (CBG). CBG is a protein which binds to GCs and facilitates their transportation in blood. When bound to CBG, GCs are unavailable to interact with target tissues. Exposure to stress can decrease CBG capacity and, thus, increase free GCs (the portion of unbound GCs). We examined the long-term effects of elevated corticosterone (CORT) during development (12-28days post-hatch) on acute stress responses, negative feedback, and CBG capacity at 30, 60, and 90days post-hatch in zebra finches. Additionally, we evaluated the effect of CORT treatment on body size and condition at 28, 60, and 90days post-hatch. CORT exposed birds had higher acute stress responses at 30days post-hatch compared to control birds. However, there was no treatment effect at 60 or 90days post-hatch. CBG levels were not affected by treatment, and so free CORT estimations reflected patterns in total CORT. CORT treatment decreased growth and condition in zebra finches at 28days post-hatch, but these differences were not present at later life history stages. However, brood size had a sustained effect on body size such that birds reared in medium sized broods were larger at 28, 60, and 90days post-hatch. These results demonstrate the complexity of early environmental effects on adult phenotype and suggest that some conditions may have stronger programmatic effects than others.
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Affiliation(s)
- O L Crino
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, 2122 New South Wales, Australia; Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States.
| | - Stephanie C Driscoll
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - C W Breuner
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
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18
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Lynn SE, Kern MD, Phillips MM. Neonatal handling alters the development of the adrenocortical response to stress in a wild songbird (eastern bluebird, Sialia sialis). Gen Comp Endocrinol 2013; 186:157-63. [PMID: 23524000 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2013.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2012] [Revised: 03/02/2013] [Accepted: 03/04/2013] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Neonatal handling of captive vertebrates can shape the development of their hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and alter their ability to respond to stressful stimuli later in life. However, the long-term effects of such handling on this endocrine axis in free-living species are not well understood. We investigated the effects of age and neonatal handling on corticosterone secretion in response to restraint in eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) chicks. We found that unhandled ("naïve") and handled ("experienced") chicks exhibited no corticosterone response to handling early in development. Thereafter, naïve individuals exhibited the progressive development of a corticosterone response with age, and by day 12 post-hatch, the response resembled that of adult bluebirds. Experienced nestlings, which were handled every other day from the day of hatch, showed a similar pattern of HPA development until day 12 post-hatch, when their corticosterone response was significantly reduced compared to that of naïve nestlings. In contrast, chicks that were handled only once, when 10days old, did not show a reduced corticosterone response at 12days old. Taken together, our data suggest that a certain threshold of accumulated neonatal handling episodes is necessary to depress corticosterone secretion, and/or that the cumulative effects of several handling episodes only manifest themselves once the HPA axis is fully developed. Our findings, in concert with studies on two other wild species, indicate that routine handling of nestlings in the field can alter their responses to stress in a species-specific manner, potentially leading to important fitness consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon E Lynn
- The College of Wooster, Department of Biology, 931 College Mall, Wooster, OH 44691, USA.
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19
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Love OP, McGowan PO, Sheriff MJ. Maternal adversity and ecological stressors in natural populations: the role of stress axis programming in individuals, with implications for populations and communities. Funct Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2435.2012.02040.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 152] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Oliver P. Love
- Department of Biological Sciences; University of Windsor; 401 Sunset Avenue; Windsor; Ontario; N9B 3P4; Canada
| | - Patrick O. McGowan
- Department of Biological Sciences; University of Toronto Scarborough; 1265 Military Trail; Toronto; Ontario; M1C 1A4; Canada
| | - Michael J. Sheriff
- Institute of Arctic Biology; University of Alaska Fairbanks; 902 N. Koyukuk Dr; Fairbanks; Alaska; 99775; USA
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20
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Landys MM, Goymann W, Slagsvold T. Rearing conditions have long-term consequences for stress responsiveness in free-living great tits. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2011; 174:219-24. [PMID: 21925180 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2011.08.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2011] [Revised: 08/25/2011] [Accepted: 08/30/2011] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In captivity, the adrenocortical stress response can be permanently altered by events that occur during early life. Free-living animals have rarely been examined in this regard. To examine whether early-life events impact the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in the natural setting, we evaluated the stress response of free-living interspecifically cross-fostered great tits (Parus major). Cross-fostered birds may show a long-term potentiation of the adrenocortical stress response because species-specific nutritional requirements may not be met in the nest and/or cross-fostered birds may experience psychosocial stress while being raised by heterospecifics. Nevertheless, we hypothesized that in the natural setting, programmed changes in HPA function would be eclipsed by reactive responses to the immediate environment. Thus, we predicted that adult cross-fostered great tits and controls would show no differences in their adrenocortical stress response. Contrary to predictions, we found that stress responsiveness (i.e., the rate of the corticosterone increase associated with capture and handling) was significantly higher in cross-fostered great tits than in controls. Further, stress responsiveness was not significantly different between mature adults and first-year juveniles. Thus, data indicate significant effects of early rearing conditions on adrenocortical reactivity in the natural setting and also suggest that effects of rearing conditions in free-living animals can last into adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mėta M Landys
- Department of Biology, Centre for Evolutionary and Ecological Synthesis, University of Oslo, P.O. Box 1066, Blindern, N-0316 Oslo, Norway.
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21
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Brzęk P, Kohl KD, Caviedes-Vidal E, Karasov WH. Fully reversible phenotypic plasticity of digestive physiology in young house sparrows: lack of long-term effect of early diet composition. J Exp Biol 2011; 214:2755-60. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.058727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
SUMMARY
Feeding conditions during the nestling period may significantly affect whole-life fitness in altricial birds but little is known about the physiological mechanisms responsible for these effects. Permanent changes (irreversible developmental plasticity) in digestive physiology caused by the neonatal diet may form such a mechanism. We previously showed that the lack of starch in the diet of house sparrow (Passer domesticus) nestlings between 3 and 12 days post-hatching significantly decreased the activity of intestinal maltase, an enzyme essential for starch digestion. To check whether diet-induced variation in maltase activity in young house sparrows is reversible, we raised them under laboratory conditions from 3 until 30 days of age on diets with either 0% starch or 25% starch, with some individuals experiencing a switch in their assigned diet at 12 days of age. We found evidence for the presence of an internal, presumably genetic, program for changes in the activity of maltase and sucrase, which was, however, significantly affected by diet composition (i.e. environmental factor). Digestive enzyme activity in 30 day old birds was not influenced by diet composition prior to day 12 but instead depended only on diet that was fed between days 12 and 30. We conclude that plasticity in the activity of intestinal disaccharidases in house sparrow nestlings represents completely reversible phenotypic flexibility that can help young sparrows to cope with unpredictable variation in food composition during ontogeny without long-term effects on their digestive system. However, comparison with other species suggests that the magnitude of digestive flexibility in young passerines may be evolutionarily matched to species-specific variation in feeding conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paweł Brzęk
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Kevin D. Kohl
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Enrique Caviedes-Vidal
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Laboratorio de Biología `Professor E. Caviedes Codelia', Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, and Departamento de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
- Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
| | - William H. Karasov
- Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706, USA
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22
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Strasser EH, Heath JA. Effects of developmental conditions on nestling American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) corticosterone concentrations. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2011; 173:164-70. [PMID: 21641910 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2011.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2011] [Revised: 05/11/2011] [Accepted: 05/17/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
How nestling birds respond to stressful situations may constitute an important survival component that has lasting developmental effects on the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. As birds are exposed to increasing amounts of potential anthropogenic stressors through land use change, understanding how these factors contribute to HPA development is important. We examined whether conditions experienced during the nestling stage affected free-living American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) HPA activity prior to fledging. Kestrels experienced varying levels of human disturbance around their nest and we classified this environmental exposure as high or low environmental human disturbance based on traffic patterns and land use. We then exposed some broods from high and low disturbance areas to a standardized disturbance protocol. Prior to fledging we collected blood samples from 25-day-old nestlings immediately after capture and 15 min post-capture. Corticosterone (CORT) did not vary with environmental human disturbance levels, disturbance protocol treatment, or with an interaction between environmental human disturbance and disturbance protocol treatment suggesting that nestling kestrels may not perceive external conditions related to human disturbance as stressful or kestrels may acclimate to disturbance. We also compared the relative effects of environmental human disturbance outside the nest cavity, conditions within the nest cavity (brood size), and individual condition (nestling fat scores) on baseline and stress-induced CORT. Baseline CORT did not vary with human disturbance level, brood size or fat score. Fat scores best explained stress-induced CORT with nestlings in better condition displaying elevated CORT. These results suggest that individual variation is more likely to explain HPA development compared to nest conditions or the external environment. This study demonstrates the importance of considering the effects of developmental conditions on the stress response at several scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin H Strasser
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725, USA.
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23
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Whitman BA, Breuner CW, Dufty AM. The effects of neonatal handling on adrenocortical responsiveness, morphological development and corticosterone binding globulin in nestling American kestrels (Falco sparverius). Gen Comp Endocrinol 2011; 172:260-7. [PMID: 21420408 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2011.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2010] [Revised: 03/02/2011] [Accepted: 03/13/2011] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Early developmental experiences play an important role in development of the adult phenotype. We investigated the effects of neonatal handling on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in a free-living avian species, the American kestrel (Falco sparverius). In the handled group (H), kestrel chicks were handled for 15 min/day from hatching until 26 days of age, after which time blood samples were collected for analysis of adrenal responsiveness and corticosterone binding globulin (CBG) levels. The non-handled control group (NH) was left undisturbed until 26 days of age when blood samples were collected and analyzed as above. Handled and NH kestrels did not differ in body condition index. Both total corticosterone (CORT) and CBG capacity were dampened significantly in H kestrels. However, free CORT did not differ between the two groups. In addition, hormone challenges of corticotropin releasing factor and adrenocorticotropin hormone were compared to saline injections to determine if the pituitary or the adrenal glands, respectively, were rendered more or less sensitive by handling. There was no difference in the responsiveness of H and NH kestrels to either hormone challenge. It is clear from these data that handling had an affect on fledgling phenotypic development, although whether the effects are permanent or ephemeral is unknown.
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Affiliation(s)
- Buddy A Whitman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725, USA
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24
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ANGELIER F, BALLENTINE B, HOLBERTON RL, MARRA PP, GREENBERG R. What drives variation in the corticosterone stress response between subspecies? A common garden experiment of swamp sparrows (Melospiza georgiana). J Evol Biol 2011; 24:1274-83. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2011.02260.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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25
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Stöwe M, Rosivall B, Drent PJ, Möstl E. Selection for fast and slow exploration affects baseline and stress-induced corticosterone excretion in Great tit nestlings, Parus major. Horm Behav 2010; 58:864-71. [PMID: 20807535 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2010] [Revised: 08/21/2010] [Accepted: 08/25/2010] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
In nestlings, glucocorticoid (GC) secretion has short-term and long-term fitness consequences. For example, short-time elevations trigger begging activity, whereas chronically elevated GC levels impair body condition, growth and cognitive abilities. Despite a growing body of literature on personality traits, the effects of selection for fast and slow exploration on GC secretion have received little attention. We compared baseline and stress-induced hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity of hand-reared great tit nestlings of lines selected for fast and slow exploration. Nestling droppings were collected under three conditions: control, test (following handling stress, day 14 after hatching) and the following day. The concentrations of excreted immunoreactive corticosterone metabolites (CM) were determined via an enzyme immunoassay. We also observed nestlings' begging behaviour. CM differed significantly between the lines. Nestlings of the fast line excreted lower CM than slow-line birds. In response to handling stress, nestlings excreted significantly higher concentrations of CM than during the control and on the day after handling. Sex and begging activity were not related to CM levels. Under the control condition, but not after handling, males begged significantly more often than females. In both lines, adults excreted significantly less CM compared to nestlings. Both nestlings and adults of the slow line produced higher baseline CM values than fast-line birds. Fast-line nestlings excreted lower baseline CM than nestlings of a wild population not selected for fast or slow exploration. Slow-line nestlings did not. Our results show that selection on the basis of exploratory behaviour affected HPA axis reactivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mareike Stöwe
- Department of Biomedical Sciences/Biochemistry, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, Vienna, Austria.
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26
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Lendvai AZ, Chastel O. Natural variation in stress response is related to post-stress parental effort in male house sparrows. Horm Behav 2010; 58:936-42. [PMID: 20851701 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2010] [Revised: 09/07/2010] [Accepted: 09/08/2010] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The central life-history trade-off between current and future reproductive effort seems to be mediated by corticosterone in birds. However, still little is known about how naturally occurring corticosterone levels during an acute stress may influence subsequent parental behavior. In this study we observed the parental behavior of free-living male house sparrows (Passer domesticus) both before and after they were subjected to a standard capture-handling stress. We investigated the relationships between corticosterone levels, pre- and post-stress parental behavior, while we statistically controlled for a number of other variables using a multivariate regression method, the path analysis. We found that males' baseline feeding rate predicted the body mass of the nestlings, indicating that male parental care is directly linked to fitness. Corticosterone levels were not explained by baseline feeding rate, but both baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels had a negative influence on the males' post-stress feeding behavior. Moreover, males with large bib size had a stronger stress response and lower post-stress feeding rate than small bibbed males. These results indicate that naturally occurring variation in baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels may influence subsequent parental decisions: individuals mounting a robust stress response are likely to reduce their parental commitment. Parental effort may be regulated in a complex manner, with corticosterone mediating the life-history trade-off between current reproduction and survival. However, different resolutions of this trade-off were apparent only following the stress, therefore the ability to modulate the stress response and maintain parental care in stressful situations may be important in life-history evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adám Z Lendvai
- Institute of Biology, College of Nyíregyháza, Sóstói út 31/b, Nyíregyháza, Hungary.
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