Waksmonski Sarah N, Huffman Justin M, Mahan Carolyn G, Steele Michael A
Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, 3000 Ivyside, The Pennsylvania State University, Altoona, PA 16601, USA.
Department of Biology, Wilkes University, 84 West South St., Wilkes-Barre, PA 18766, USA.
Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl. 2017 May 25;6(2):135-137. doi: 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2017.05.003. eCollection 2017 Aug.
The immuno-competence hypothesis proposes that higher levels of testosterone increases the susceptibility to parasitism. Here we examined the testosterone levels in two species of flying squirrels (): one known to regularly host a nematode species () without ill effects () and a closely related species that is considered negatively affected by the parasite. We quantified fecal testosterone levels in northern and southern flying squirrels () with high-performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet spectroscopy (HPLC-UV), and compared levels to endoparasites detected in individual squirrels. Qualitatively, we found highest levels of testosterone in male northern flying squirrels infected with . This analytical approach represents an alternative and equally reliable method to using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), for detecting and quantifying fecal testosterone levels.
