Inhibition of corticosterone synthesis induces the transition from courtship to feeding behavior in red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis).

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Inhibition of corticosterone synthesis induces the transition from courtship to feeding behavior in red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis). Deborah I. Lutterschmidt1*, Skylar D. McHenry2 and Walter Wilczynski2 1 Portland State University, Department of Biology, United States 2 Georgia State University, Neuroscience Institute, United States Seasonal modulation of glucocorticoids plays an important role in supporting critical life-history events such as reproduction and migration. In a well-studied population of red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis), glucocorticoids are elevated during the brief mating season. Elevated glucocorticoids likely facilitate energetically expensive courtship behavior, as snakes do not eat during the mating season and must migrate up to 17 km to forage at feeding grounds. We previously demonstrated that dispersing male red-sided garter snakes have significantly lower baseline corticosterone than courting snakes, suggesting that elevated corticosterone is necessary to support reproductive behavior. To test this hypothesis, we collected courting snakes and randomly assigned them to one of the following hormone implant treatments: control, 250 or 1000 mg metyrapone, a corticosterone synthesis inhibitor. Males were then tested on a y-maze and allowed to choose between a female or worm trail (i.e., a courtship or feeding cue). Significantly more snakes receiving 1000 mg of metyrapone (9 of 10) chose worm trails at 14 days post-treatment than snakes receiving the control implant (0 of 10; P < 0.001). These results indicate that a decrease in plasma corticosterone regulates the behavioral switch from reproduction to foraging in the spring. In a second experiment, we examined whether the differences in plasma corticosterone between courting and foraging snakes result from differences in corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF). We collected actively courting snakes from the den and foraging snakes during dispersal (n = 4 in each) and processed the brains for CRF immunohistochemistry. There were no differences in the distribution or numbers of immunoreactive cells between snakes. These preliminary results suggest that some other factor, such as a change in the sensitivity of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, may underlie the activation of feeding behavior during spring. Keywords: Corticosterone, corticotrophin releasing factor, courtship behavior, Dispersal, feeding, Metyrapone, Reproduction, reptile Conference: NASCE 2011: The inaugural meeting of the North American Society for Comparative Endocrinology, Ann Arbor, United States, 13 Jul - 16 Jul, 2011. Presentation Type: Poster Topic: Stress hormones Citation: Lutterschmidt DI, McHenry SD and Wilczynski W (2011). Inhibition of corticosterone synthesis induces the transition from courtship to feeding behavior in red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis).. Front. Endocrinol. Conference Abstract: NASCE 2011: The inaugural meeting of the North American Society for Comparative Endocrinology. doi: 10.3389/conf.fendo.2011.04.00096 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 20 Jul 2011; Published Online: 09 Aug 2011. * Correspondence: Dr. Deborah I Lutterschmidt, Portland State University, Department of Biology, Portland, OR, 97207, United States, D.Lutterschmidt@pdx.edu Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Deborah I Lutterschmidt Skylar D McHenry Walter Wilczynski Google Deborah I Lutterschmidt Skylar D McHenry Walter Wilczynski Google Scholar Deborah I Lutterschmidt Skylar D McHenry Walter Wilczynski PubMed Deborah I Lutterschmidt Skylar D McHenry Walter Wilczynski Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.