Yolk is a source of maternal testosterone for developing birds

H Schwabl

doi:10.1073/pnas.90.24.11446

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Yolk is a source of maternal testosterone for developing birds

Journal article

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Yolk is a source of maternal testosterone for developing birds

H Schwabl

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS, Vol.90(24), pp.11446-11450

12/15/1993

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.90.24.11446

Handle:

https://hdl.handle.net/2376/113597

PMCID: PMC48000

PMID: 8265571

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Abstract

Egg Yolk - chemistry

Testosterone - physiology

Male

Sex Characteristics

Birds - physiology

Canaries - physiology

Animals

Androgens - analysis

Social Behavior

Mass Spectrometry

Radioimmunoassay

Testosterone - analysis

Egg Yolk - physiology

Female

Oviposition

The sex steroid hormones that affect development in birds have been thought to be produced exclusively by the embryo or neonate. I used radioimmunoassay to measure the amounts of androstenedione, 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone, testosterone, 17 beta-estradiol, and corticosterone in the yolk of freshly laid canary (Serinus canaria) and zebra finch (Poephila guttata) eggs. Testosterone was found in both canary and zebra finch eggs, but its contents were much higher in the former than in the latter. The testosterone content of canary eggs in a same clutch increased with the order of laying, regardless of the genetic sex of the offspring that hatched from these eggs. Yolk testosterone was also present in the eggs of female canaries that were kept without a male, indicating that it is of maternal origin. The social rank of juvenile canaries was positively correlated with the concentration of yolk testosterone in the eggs from which they hatched, suggesting that the development of aggressive behavior of offspring might be subject to modification by maternal testosterone. These findings indicate that female songbirds can bestow upon their eggs a dose of hormone that modifies the behavior of offspring. Variable doses of these hormones might explain some of the individual variation in offspring behavior.

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Title: Yolk is a source of maternal testosterone for developing birds
Creators: H Schwabl - Rockefeller University Field Research Center for Ecology and Ethology, Millbrook, NY 12545
Publication Details: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS, Vol.90(24), pp.11446-11450
Academic Unit: Biological Sciences, School of
Publisher: United States
Grant note: MH 18343 / NIMH NIH HHS
Identifiers: 99900547404401842
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article