Tang Jia, Poirier Alice C, Duytschaever Gwen, Moreira Laís A A, Nevo Omer, Melin Amanda D
Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Canada.
German Centre of Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Germany.
R Soc Open Sci. 2021 Sep 1;8(9):210172. doi: 10.1098/rsos.210172. eCollection 2021 Sep.
For female mammals, communicating the timing of ovulation is essential for reproduction. Olfactory communication via volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can play a key role. We investigated urinary VOCs across the oestrous cycle using laboratory mice. We assessed the oestrous stage through daily vaginal cytology and analysed urinary VOCs using headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), testing a portable GC-MS against a benchtop system. We detected 65 VOCs from 40 samples stored in VOC traps and analysed on a benchtop GC-MS, and 15 VOCs from 90 samples extracted by solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and analysed on a portable GC-MS. Only three compounds were found in common between the two techniques. Urine collected from the fertile stages of the oestrous cycle had increased quantities of a few notable VOCs compared with urine from non-fertile stages. These VOCs may be indicators of fertility. However, we did not find significant differences in chemical composition among oestrous stages. It is possible that changes in VOC abundance were too small to be detected by our analytical methods. Overall, the use of VOC traps combined with benchtop GC-MS was the more successful of the two methods, yet portable GC-MS systems may still have utility for some applications.
对于雌性哺乳动物而言，传达排卵时间对繁殖至关重要。通过挥发性有机化合物（VOCs）进行嗅觉交流可能起到关键作用。我们使用实验室小鼠研究了整个发情周期中的尿液挥发性有机化合物。我们通过每日阴道细胞学检查评估发情阶段，并使用顶空气相色谱 - 质谱联用仪（GC - MS）分析尿液挥发性有机化合物，将便携式GC - MS与台式系统进行对比测试。我们从储存在挥发性有机化合物捕集阱中的40个样本中检测出65种挥发性有机化合物，并在台式气相色谱 - 质谱联用仪上进行分析，从通过固相微萃取（SPME）提取并在便携式气相色谱 - 质谱联用仪上进行分析的90个样本中检测出15种挥发性有机化合物。两种技术仅发现三种共同的化合物。与非排卵期尿液相比，从发情周期的排卵期收集的尿液中几种显著的挥发性有机化合物含量有所增加。这些挥发性有机化合物可能是生育能力的指标。然而，我们未发现发情阶段之间在化学成分上存在显著差异。有可能挥发性有机化合物丰度的变化太小，无法被我们的分析方法检测到。总体而言，在这两种方法中，使用挥发性有机化合物捕集阱结合台式气相色谱 - 质谱联用仪更为成功，但便携式气相色谱 - 质谱联用仪系统在某些应用中可能仍有用处。
