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The role of prolactin in the regulation of brood care in the cooperatively breeding fish Neolamprologus pulcher

2008Journal article Restricted access
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dc.contributor.authorBender, N.
dc.contributor.authorTaborsky, M.
dc.contributor.authorPower, Deborah
dc.date.accessioned2014-10-24T10:56:02Z
dc.date.available2014-10-24T10:56:02Z
dc.date.issued2008
dc.description.abstractThe hormone prolactin (PRL) is important for the regulation of parental care in many species of mammals, birds and fish, and for alloparental care (care directed at nondescendant young) in some mammals and birds. Its significance in alloparental brood care of cooperatively breeding fish has not yet been assessed. Here, we test the role of PRL in brood care behavior of the cooperatively breeding cichlid Neolamprologus pulcher. The expression of PRL mRNA was determined in the pituitary glands of breeders of both sexes, helpers that showed brood care behavior and nonbreeding fish as controls. In addition, PRL levels were experimentally manipulated in male breeders and helpers by intraperitoneal injections of ovine PRL, and the behavior of these test fish was recorded toward standardized clutches. Adult females had higher levels of PRL mRNA than adult males, which was true both for breeders and nonbreeders. Contrary to expectation, there was no positive correlation between PRL and brood care behavior in any category of test fish, and the experimental application of PRL did not change brood care propensity. Interestingly, brood-caring adult females had significantly lower levels of PRL mRNA than adult female nonbreeders, whereas there was no difference between helpers and similar-sized nonbreeding group members. PRL mRNA levels increased with body mass in juveniles, but decreased with body mass in adults. In conclusion, we found no evidence that elevated levels of PRL are directly involved in the regulation of brood care behavior in this species.por
dc.description.sponsorshipWe thank R. Eggler, P. Stettler and E. Zwygart for their technical assistance, and our colleagues from the Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Ecology Departments, University of Bern, for the feedback on experimental design. We thank R. Teodosio and O. Mu¨hlemann for their technical assistance during the hormonal analyses and S. Geiser, T. Ott and E. Jutzeler for their assistance during fish observations. I. M. Hamilton helped with data analyses and provided useful comments on the manuscript. The project was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF grants 3100-064396 and 3100A0- 105626 to M. T. and SNSF grants 3234- 069260.02/1 and PIOIA-103213 to N. B.), by the Hochschulstiftung der Burgergemeinde Bern to N.B. and by the pluriannual funding program of the Centro de Cieˆncias de Mar from the Portuguese Foundation of Science and Technology to D. M. P.por
dc.identifier.citationBender N, Taborsky M, Power DM. 2008. The role of prolactin in the regulation of brood care in the cooperatively breeding fish Neolamprologus pulcher. J. Exp. Zool. 309A:515–524.por
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jez.482
dc.identifier.issn0022-104X
dc.identifier.otherAUT: DPO00386; LBR00503;
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/5471
dc.language.isoengpor
dc.peerreviewedyespor
dc.publisherWileypor
dc.titleThe role of prolactin in the regulation of brood care in the cooperatively breeding fish Neolamprologus pulcherpor
dc.typejournal article
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.endPage524por
oaire.citation.startPage515por
oaire.citation.titleJournal of Experimental Zoologypor
oaire.citation.volume309por
person.familyNamePower
person.givenNameDeborah Mary
person.identifier.ciencia-id891A-8A44-3CAE
person.identifier.orcid0000-0003-1366-0246
person.identifier.scopus-author-id7101806760
rcaap.rightsrestrictedAccesspor
rcaap.typearticlepor
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationc68f5ffb-63f6-4c70-8957-29e464fb59c0
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryc68f5ffb-63f6-4c70-8957-29e464fb59c0

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