title: Fecal glucocorticoids document stress in female Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus).
abstract: Patterns of received aggression and the endocrine response were related to an increase in fecal glucocorticoid metabolites in an intact semifree-ranging group of Barbary macaque females in order to quantify the social stress incurred over a 20-week observation period. The novel result showed that immunoreactive cortisol and 11-oxoetiocholanolone found in the feces can indeed determine the endocrine response of the adrenal gland after a social stressor. After HPLC separation of pooled fecal samples, EIA analyses using three different assays (corticosterone, cortisol, and 11-oxoetiocholanolone) to quantify immunoreactive steroids showed that the corticosterone EIA had no distinctive immunoreactive peaks. Cortisol and 11-oxoetiocholanolone immunoassays showed respectively four and two immunoreactive substances. Time series analyses revealed a behaviorally initiated increase in concentrations of cortisol and 11-oxoetiocholanolone equivalents. Furthermore, both hormone curves exhibit comparable time functions. Either antibody is very suitable for determining glucocorticoid secretion after periods of stress.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Zoology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, Vienna, A-1090, Austria. a8731gct@vm.univie.ac.at
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wallner
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Möstl
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dittami
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Prossinger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005043:Etiocholanolone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000032:analysis; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000032:analysis*; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D008251:Macaca; D012919:Social Behavior; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005938:Glucocorticoids; D005043:Etiocholanolone; D006854:Hydrocortisone; C015962:11-ketoetiocholanolone