1,720,976 research outputs found
3β-HSD expression in the CNS of a manakin and finch
No full textThe prohormone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) circulates in vertebrate blood with the potential for actions on target tissues including the central nervous system (CNS). Many actions of DHEA require its conversion into more active products, some of which are catalyzed by the enzyme 3Î2-hydroxysteroid-dehydrogenase/isomerase (3Î2-HSD). Studies of birds show both expression and activity of 3Î2-HSD in brain and its importance in regulating social behavior. In oscine songbirds, 3Î2-HSD is expressed at reasonably high levels in brain, possibly linked to their complex neural circuitry controlling song. Studies also indicate that circulating DHEA may serve as the substrate for neural 3Î2-HSD to produce active steroids that activate behavior during non-breeding seasons. In the golden-collared manakin (Manacus vitellinus), a sub-oscine bird, low levels of courtship behavior are displayed by males when circulating testosterone levels are basal. Therefore, we asked whether DHEA circulates in blood of manakins and whether the brain expresses 3Î2-HSD mRNA. Given that the spinal cord is a target of androgens and likely important in regulating acrobatic movements, we also examined expression of this enzyme in the manakin spinal cord. For comparison, we examined expression levels with those of an oscine songbird, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), a species in which brain, but not spinal cord, 3Î2-HSD has been well studied. DHEA was detected in manakin blood at levels similar to that seen in other species. As described previously, 3Î2-HSD was expressed in all zebra finch brain regions examined. By contrast, expression of 3Î2-HSD was only detected in the manakin hypothalamus where levels were greater than zebra finches. In spinal cord, 3Î2-HSD was detected in some but not all regions in both species. These data point to species differences and indicate that manakins have the substrate and neural machinery to convert circulating DHEA into potentially active androgens and/or estrogens
The role of social and endocrinological context in regulating life history transitions among reproductive phenotypes in the bluebanded goby, Lythrypnus dalli
Get PDFDuring the lifetime of an organism, key events are orchestrated by a confluence of environmental, social, and physiological factors to promote reproductive success. Steroid hormones are critical regulators of fundamental aspects of reproductive life history, including gametogenesis, secondary sexual characteristics, sexual behavior, territory establishment and defense, and parenting. The steroid hormones investigated herein (testosterone (T), 11-ketotestosterone (KT), 17b-estradiol (E2) and cortisol) are linked through steroidogenic conversion pathways. This dissertation utilized an integrative approach to investigate the neuroendocrine and social contexts that regulate transitions among phenotypes in a bi-directionally hermaphroditic haremic fish, Lythrypnus dalli. Conventional sex roles are reversed, such that only males provide nest care, females exhibit intra-sexual competition and male reproductive success is associated with female courtship solicitation. Females living in stable social groups maintain dramatic differences in status, morphology, and tissue T, KT, E2, and cortisol. Parasitic male morphs, mini males, do not defend territories and have morph-typical water-borne and tissue profiles of T, E2, and KT. Two life history transitions, socially induced sex change and male parenting, are associated with increase in rates of behavior and KT levels. The regulation of these life history transitions by KT was investigated via two types of endocrine manipulations. Coupling systemic KT implants with a social context permissive to sex change caused rapid, but transient effects on agonistic behavior in dominant females, and secondary effects on subordinates during a period of social instability. Despite elevated brain and systemic KT 5 d after implant, overall rates of aggressive behavior remained unaffected, demonstrating a key role for context in regulating steroid associated changes in behavior. Intracerebroventricular inhibition of the enzyme 11b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, reduced KT, elevated cortisol, and reduced male parenting behavior. 11-Ketotestosterone rapidly rescued parenting when administered along with the inhibitor, while cortisol had no effects on parenting. During reduced male nest attendance caused by KT inhibition, dominant, but not subordinate females, exhibited transient parenting and elevated brain KT. Taken together, rapid and/or local modulation of steroids allows for context-specific regulation of dynamic changes in behavior in an environment that requires an organism to successfully coordinate multiple activities to enhance fitness
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Contextual Modulation of Social and Endocrine Correlates of Fitness: Insights From the Life History of a Sex Changing Fish
Get PDFSteroid hormones are critical regulators of reproductive life history, and the steroid sensitive traits (morphology, behavior, physiology) associated with particular life history stages can have substantial fitness consequences for an organism. Hormones, behavior and fitness are reciprocally associated and can be used in an integrative fashion to understand how the environment impacts organismal function. To address the fitness component, we highlight the importance of using reliable proxies of reproductive success when studying proximate regulation of reproductive phenotypes. To understand the mechanisms by which the endocrine system regulates phenotype, we discuss the use of particular endocrine proxies and the need for appropriate functional interpretation of each. Lastly, in any experimental paradigm, the responses of animals vary based on the subtle differences in environmental and social context and this must also be considered. We explore these different levels of analyses by focusing on the fascinating life history transitions exhibited by the bi-directionally hermaphroditic fish, Lythrypnus dalli. Sex changing fish are excellent models for providing a deeper understanding of the fitness consequences associated with behavioral and endocrine variation. We close by proposing that local regulation of steroids is one potential mechanism that allows for the expression of novel phenotypes that can be characteristic of specific life history stages. A comparative species approach will facilitate progress in understanding the diversity of mechanisms underlying the contextual regulation of phenotypes and their associated fitness correlates.Originally Published in:
Front Neurosci, 9 8. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2015.0000
Rapid social regulation of 3β-HSD activity in the songbird brain
No full textRapid increases in plasma androgens are generally associated with short-term aggressive challenges in many breeding vertebrates. However, some animals such as song sparrows (Melospiza melodia) are aggressive year-round, even during the non-breeding season, when gonads are regressed and systemic testosterone (T) levels are non-detectable. In contrast, levels of the prohormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) are elevated year-round in the plasma and brain. The local conversion of brain DHEA to potent androgens may be critical in regulating non-breeding aggression. 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase/Δ4-Δ5 isomerase (3β-HSD) catalyzes DHEA conversion to androstenedione (AE) and the cofactor NAD⁺ assists in this transformation. In this thesis, I asked whether brain 3β-HSD activity is regulated by social encounters in seasonally breeding male songbirds. In Experiment 1, I looked at the long-term seasonal regulation of brain 3β-HSD activity. 3β-HSD activity was highest in the non-breeding season compared to the breeding season and molt. In Experiment 2, I hypothesized that brain 3β-HSD activity is rapidly regulated by short-term social encounters during the non-breeding season. A 30 min social challenge increased aggressive behavior. Without exogenous NAD⁺, there was ~355% increase in 3β-HSD activity in the caudal telencephalon and ~615% increase in the medial central telencephalon compared to controls (p<0.05). With exogenous NAD⁺, there was no effect of social challenge on 3β-HSD activity. These data suggest that endogenous cofactors play a critical role in the neuroendocrine response to social challenges. The increase in brain DHEA conversion to AE during social challenges may be a mechanism to rapidly increase local androgens in the non-breeding season, when there are many costs of systemic T.Science, Faculty ofZoology, Department ofGraduat
Contextual Modulation of Social and Endocrine Correlates of Fitness: Insights From the Life History of a Sex Changing Fish
Get PDFSteroid hormones are critical regulators of reproductive life history, and the steroid sensitive traits (morphology, behavior, physiology) associated with particular life history stages can have substantial fitness consequences for an organism. Hormones, behavior and fitness are reciprocally associated and can be used in an integrative fashion to understand how the environment impacts organismal function. To address the fitness component, we highlight the importance of using reliable proxies of reproductive success when studying proximate regulation of reproductive phenotypes. To understand the mechanisms by which the endocrine system regulates phenotype, we discuss the use of particular endocrine proxies and the need for appropriate functional interpretation of each. Lastly, in any experimental paradigm, the responses of animals vary based on the subtle differences in environmental and social context and this must also be considered. We explore these different levels of analyses by focusing on the fascinating life history transitions exhibited by the bi-directionally hermaphroditic fish, Lythrypnus dalli. Sex changing fish are excellent models for providing a deeper understanding of the fitness consequences associated with behavioral and endocrine variation. We close by proposing that local regulation of steroids is one potential mechanism that allows for the expression of novel phenotypes that can be characteristic of specific life history stages. A comparative species approach will facilitate progress in understanding the diversity of mechanisms underlying the contextual regulation of phenotypes and their associated fitness correlates
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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