Evaluation of respiratory vapour and blubber samples for use in endocrine assessments of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.)

Mingramm, F.M.J.; Dunlop, Rebecca A.; Blyde, David; Whitworth, Deanne J.; Keeley, Tamara

doi:10.1016/j.ygcen.2018.12.015

Cited by 23 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…These concordant patterns between the two kinds of samples validated in principle the use of progesterone concentration in blubber for determining the reproductive status of Antarctic minke whale females. The results showing a positive correlation between plasma and blubber were in agreement with those of previous studies in the bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus (Kellar et al 2013) and bottlenose dolphin (Mingramm et al 2019).…”

Section: Comparison Of Progesterone Concentrations In Blubber and Plasmasupporting

confidence: 93%

“…This is different from the case of the bottlenose dolphin, where the pattern of progesterone concentrations in ovulating females was similar for plasma and blubber samples, i.e. the concentrations in all ovulating females were clearly lower than those in pregnant females (Mingramm et al 2019). The ovulation status was determined by direct observation of ovaries and uterus in the Antarctic minke whale while it was determined by indirect observations in the bottlenose dolphin.…”

Section: Comparison Of Progesterone Concentrations In Blubber and Plasmamentioning

confidence: 65%

“…The average and range of progesterone levels in blubber of all reproductive categories of Antarctic minke whale were comparable to those of the North Atlantic common minke whale (Mansour et al 2002). These values were somewhat lower than those in the shortbeaked common dolphin, northern right-whale dolphin and Pacific white-sided dolphin (Kellar et al 2006), but much higher than those in bottlenose dolphins (Mingramm et al 2019). However, in the case of non-pregnant mature females, the Antarctic minke whales showed a wider range and higher concentrations than other species studied previously ( Table 2).…”

Section: General Aspectsmentioning

confidence: 65%

“…Kellar et al (2006) reported that the progesterone levels in blubber of pregnant females were clearly higher than those of non-pregnant mature and immature females, regardless of fetal length, in short-beaked common dolphins Delphinus delphis, northern right-whale dolphins Lissodelphis borealis and Pacific white-sided dolphins Lagenorhynchus obliquidens from fishery bycatches in California, USA. Mingramm et al (2019) reported that the progesterone levels in blubber of pregnant females were clearly higher than in immature and non-pregnant mature in captive bottlenose dolphins Tursiops spp. These results suggest that progesterone levels in blubber can distinguish pregnancy status, although they could not estimate pregnancy stage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Comparison of progesterone concentrations in blubber and plasma among female Antarctic minke whales of known reproductive status

Inoue¹,

Yasunaga²,

Pastene³

2019

Fish Sci

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The utility of progesterone concentration in blubber as a means of determining reproductive status in the Antarctic minke whale Balaenoptera bonaerensis was assessed through a comparative analysis of progesterone concentration in blubber and plasma among 230 female whales of known reproductive status (immature, resting, ovulating or pregnant). Whales were sampled during the austral summer in the Antarctic Ocean. The general pattern of progesterone concentration by reproductive category was well correlated between blubber and plasma samples, validating in principle the use of progesterone concentrations in blubber to determine the reproductive status of females. However, some differences were found for resting and ovulating females, which require further consideration. For blubber, overlap of progesterone concentrations was observed between reproductive categories with the exception of immature/ovulating and immature/pregnant. This result suggests that the method of using progesterone concentration in blubber cannot distinguish between pregnant and non-pregnant mature females. However, it can be used to distinguish between immature and mature females. Although a low overlap ratio in concentration was found between immature and resting females, the method is still useful for determining sexual maturity, because resting females of the Antarctic minke whale are seldom found in the Antarctic Ocean.

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Section: Comparison Of Progesterone Concentrations In Blubber and Plasmasupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Comparison Of Progesterone Concentrations In Blubber and Plasmamentioning

confidence: 65%

Section: General Aspectsmentioning

confidence: 65%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Comparison of progesterone concentrations in blubber and plasma among female Antarctic minke whales of known reproductive status

Inoue¹,

Yasunaga²,

Pastene³

2019

Fish Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The analysis of the diversity and composition of HW blow might therefore represent a viable approach to assess the physiological state of cetaceans. In the future, the use of additional techniques to determine body condition including photogrammetry 58 – 60 , measuring cortisol levels 61 , 62 from the whales’ blow and blubber and determining adipocyte size and number in external blubber 63 will contribute to even better understand the correlation between blow microbiota and the physiological state of the whale.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Respiratory microbiota of humpback whales may be reduced in diversity and richness the longer they fast

Vendl

Wemheuer²,

Nelson

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Humpback whales endure several months of fasting while undertaking one of the longest annual migrations of any mammal, which depletes the whales’ energy stores and likely compromises their physiological state. Airway microbiota are linked to respiratory health in mammals. To illuminate the dynamics of airway microbiota in a physiologically challenged mammal, we investigated the bacterial communities in the blow of East Australian humpback whales at two stages of their migration: at the beginning (n = 20) and several months into their migration (n = 20), using barcoded tag sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene. We show that early in the fasting the whale blow samples had a higher diversity and richness combined with a larger number of core taxa and a different bacterial composition than later in the fasting. This study provides some evidence that the rich blow microbiota at the beginning of their fasting might reflect the whales’ uncompromised physiology and that changes in the microbiota occur during the whales’ migration.

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Blubber biopsy in common bottlenose dolphins using a novel biopsy puncher: Evaluation of the impact on living individuals and possibility of applications in cetacean research

Funasaka,

Suzuki,

Hosono

et al. 2024

J Exp Zool Pt A

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Biopsy has recently become a preferred protocol for sampling the skin and blubber of many cetacean species, although it is desirable to collect as minimally invasive as possible. Here, the effect of biopsy sampling on the captive common bottlenose dolphins was evaluated by analyzing the process of wound healing and changes in hematological and blood biochemical parameters after biopsy using a puncher developed to collect up to the inner layer of the dolphin blubber. Results showed that the wounds caused by biopsy were closed in as early as 1 day and completely covered with the epidermis within 5–11 days. Blood fibrinogen, which generally increases due to a wound‐induced inflammatory response or activation of the coagulation system, was significantly elevated after the biopsy indicating ongoing tissue repair, while other parameters did not exhibit significant differences. Furthermore, histological observation and RNA extraction of samples were performed to investigate the versatility of this method to cetacean research. Histological examination revealed three distinct layers of the blubber in the biopsy samples. Moreover, total RNA extracted from biopsy samples exhibited sufficient quality and quantity for gene expression analyses. Overall, the puncher utilized in our study represents a valuable and minimally invasive tool for investigating various aspects of small cetacean studies.

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Evaluation of respiratory vapour and blubber samples for use in endocrine assessments of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.)

Abstract: Evaluation of respiratory vapour and blubber samples for use in endocrine assessments of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.),

Cited by 23 publications

References 62 publications

Comparison of progesterone concentrations in blubber and plasma among female Antarctic minke whales of known reproductive status

Comparison of progesterone concentrations in blubber and plasma among female Antarctic minke whales of known reproductive status

Respiratory microbiota of humpback whales may be reduced in diversity and richness the longer they fast

Blubber biopsy in common bottlenose dolphins using a novel biopsy puncher: Evaluation of the impact on living individuals and possibility of applications in cetacean research

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