Estimation of stress level in the bank vole Clethrionomys glareolus (Rodentidae, Rodentia) by fecal corticosterone [Russian]

摘要

A technique for the noninvasive assessment of monitoring the adrenocortical hormone was validated for bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus). The test for parallelism of the binding curve for serially diluted fecal extracts and the standard curve showed that Sigma antibodies had a satisfactory specialty for corticosterone in feces of bank voles. Individual basal values of fecal corticosterone correlated from day to day and with the basal level of plasma corticosterone. A response of fecal corticosterone to stress was assessed in a test with intraperitoneal corticotropin (ACTH) injection and aggressive interrelations between vole males. The maximal concentration of fecal corticosterone was found four hours after the ACTH injection. This level of corticosterone correlated positively with the hormone concentration in plasma collected one hour after the ACTH injection. The plasma corticosterone concentration was restored four hours after the ACTH injection; the corticosterone concentration in feces returned to the initial level one hour after the injection. The aggressive contacts of males caused a rise of corticosterone levels in plasma immediately after the test and in fecal corticosterone four hours after it. The corticosterone levels in feces and plasma also correlated under stress conditions.