Environmental influences on Adelie penguin breeding schedules, endocrinology, and chick survival.

To understand how the social and physical environment influences behaviour, reproduction and survival, studies of underlying hormonal processes are crucial; in particular, interactions between stress and reproductive responses may have critical influences on breeding schedules. Several authors have examined the timing of breeding in relation to environmental stimuli, while others have independently described endocrine profiles. However, few studies have simultaneously measured endocrine profiles, breeding behaviour, and offspring survival across seasons. We measured sex and stress hormone concentrations (oestrogens, testosterone, and corticosterone), timing of breeding, and chick survival, in Adelie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at two colonies in two different years. Clutch initiation at Cape Bird South (CBS; year 1, ~14,000 pairs) occurred later than at Cape Crozier East (CCE; year 2, ~ 25,000 pairs); however, breeding was more synchronous at CBS. This pattern was probably generated by the persistence of extensive sea ice at CBS (year 1). Higher corticosterone metabolite and lower sex hormone concentrations at CBS correlated with later breeding and lower chick survival compared to at CCE - again, a likely consequence of sea ice conditions. Within colonies, sub-colony size (S, 50-100; M, 200-300; L, 500-600; XL, >1000 pairs) did not influence the onset or synchrony of breeding, chick survival, or hormone concentrations. We showed that the endocrine profiles of breeding Adelie penguins can differ markedly between years and/or colonies, and that combining measures of endocrinology, behaviour, and offspring survival can reveal the mechanisms and consequences that different environmental conditions can have on breeding ecology.

Comparing plasma and faecal measures of steroid hormones in Adelie penguins Pygoscelis adeliae.

Physiological measurements of both stress and sex hormones are often used to estimate the consequences of natural or human-induced change in ecological studies of various animals. Different methods of hormone measurement exist, potentially explaining variation in results across studies; methods should be cross-validated to ensure that they correlate. We directly compared faecal and plasma hormone measurements for the first time in a wild free-living species, the Adelie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae). Blood and faecal samples were simultaneously collected from individual penguins for comparison and assayed for testosterone and corticosterone (or their metabolites). Sex differences and variability within each measure, and correlation of values across measures were compared. For both hormones, plasma samples showed greater variation than faecal samples. Males had higher mean corticosterone concentrations than females, but the difference was only statistically significant in faecal samples. Plasma testosterone, but not faecal testosterone, was significantly higher in males than females. Correlation between sample types was poor overall, and weaker in females than in males, perhaps because measures from plasma represent hormones that are both free and bound to globulins, whereas measures from faeces represent only the free portion. Faecal samples also represent a cumulative measure of hormones over time, as opposed to a plasma 'snapshot' concentration. Our data indicate that faecal sampling appears more suitable for assessing baseline hormone concentrations, whilst plasma sampling may best define immediate responses to environmental events. Consequently, future studies should ensure that they select the most appropriate matrix and method of hormone measurement to answer their research questions.

Effect of surgical technique on in vitro posterior capsule opacification.

PURPOSE: To compare the effect of different cataract extraction surgical techniques on residual lens epithelial cell (LEC) density and cell regrowth rates using an in vitro model of posterior capsule opacification (PCO). SETTING: Comparative Ophthalmology Research Laboratories, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. METHODS: Lens capsule explants were prepared from freshly enucleated canine globes after extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE), phacoemulsification, or phacoemulsification followed by capsule vacuuming. Initial cell density on the capsule and cell proliferation were determined by phase contrast microscopy. The effects of the surgical technique on time to confluent growth of the cells across the posterior lens capsule were determined. RESULTS: Residual cell density on the remaining anterior capsule immediately after lens removal was 31.6% +/- 19.3%, 16.1% +/- 8.9%, and 7.7% +/- 5.7% in the ECCE, phacoemulsification, and phacoemulsification/capsule-vacuuming groups, respectively. Time to confluence (range 5.0 to 6.3 days) was not significantly different among the 3 groups when the lens capsules were cultured in serum-supplemented media. The confluence rate was significantly longer (by approximately 5 to 7 days) in the phacoemulsification/capsule-vacuuming group than in the other 2 groups when the capsules were cultured in serum-free media. CONCLUSIONS: Phacoemulsification with and without anterior and equatorial capsular vacuuming led to less initial LEC density in the capsular bag than ECCE. However, because cell proliferation rates among the 3 groups were only marginally affected, near 100% removal of LEC at the time of cataract extraction may be necessary to prevent PCO.

Enzymatic determination of phosphate in conjunction with high-performance liquid chromatography.

A selective assay for orthophosphate in complex matrices was developed based on the nucleoside phosphorylase catalyzed conversion of inosine and orthophosphate of hypoxanthine. The enzyme reaction was using only 0.28 units/assay was allowed to proceed for 30 min before quenching. Separation of inosine and hypoxanthine was performed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Quantitation of the hypoxanthine peak was found to be linear with orthophosphate up to 30 micrograms/g. A detection limit of 0.75 ppm could be obtained after dialysis of the commercial enzyme. Interference studies showed that the enzymatic assay unlike the colorimetric molybdate-blue technique was essentially unaffected by complex matrices such as serum, urine, polyphosphates, and phosphoesters.

Desired family size and sex of children.

During 1975, data were obtained from 1016 unmarried Caucasian students on their preference for family size, combination of sexes within the desired size, and permutation of sexes within the desired combination. The most desired family size by both female and male respondents was two children, but the average size was more than 2.46 children. Combinations involving both sexes of children were preferred over single sexes in all families of two or more children. The preference for the first-born to be male was consistent in all combinations of male and female children. Considering all desired family sizes and combinations of sexes of children the resulting sex ratio was 137.9 males:100 females.