Non-Invasive Quantification of Faecal and Urine Reproductive Hormone Metabolites in the Naked Mole-Rat (Heterocephalus glaber).

ABSTRACT: The naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) occurs in colonies with a distinct dominance hierarchy, including one dominant, breeding female (the queen), 1-3 breeding males, and non-reproductive subordinates of both sexes that are reproductively suppressed while in the colony. To non-invasively evaluate reproductive capacity in the species, we first had to examine the suitability of enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) for determining progestogen and androgen metabolite concentrations in the naked mole-rat, using urine and faeces. A saline control and gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) were administered to twelve (six males and six females) naked mole-rats which were previously identified as dispersers and housed singly. The results revealed that urine is possibly not an ideal matrix for pr

SUBMITTER: Majelantle TL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10571929 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature