Zooparc de Beauval & Beauval Nature, 41110, Saint-Aignan, France; UMR Physiologie de la Reproduction et des Comportements, INRAE, CNRS, IFCE, Université de Tours, 37380, Nouzilly, France.
University of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Physiology - Endocrinology, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria.
Theriogenology. 2022 Feb;179:69-77. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2021.11.015. Epub 2021 Nov 22.
Developing the zoos' ability to assess the reproductive status of the individuals they house is essential to improve the husbandry and management of these species. The use of non-invasive techniques such as fecal hormone analysis has been proven to be a simple and effective way to achieve this. Designed by bioMérieux, mini VIDAS® instrument is used in human and veterinary medicine to evaluate different endocrinological parameters, including serum or plasma progesterone. This study evaluates VIDAS® Progesterone (PRG) assay's efficacy to monitor fecal progestagens using a simple sample extraction protocol adapted to the zoo environment. We compared (1) VIDAS® PRG fecal profiles with established assays specifically designed for fecal progestagens analysis at the VetmedUni (Vienna, Austria) for okapis (Okapia johnstoni), greater one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis), giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) and hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) (2) VIDAS® PRG fecal profiles with VIDAS® PRG serum profiles for African elephants (Loxodonta Africana), giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) and white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum). Spearman mean correlations were: 0.6748 for African elephants (n = 2 animals), 0.7969 for giant anteater (n = 1 animal), 0.7926 for okapis (n = 2 animals), 0.6072 for greater one-horned rhinoceros (n = 4 animals), 0.6062 for giraffes (n = 4 animals) and 0.5740 for hippopotamus (n = 2 animals). Fecal progestagens analysis revealed estrous cycles in several species: 12.5 ± 0.5 weeks for African elephants (n = 2 cycles), 15.3 ± 1.1 days for okapis (n = 6 cycles), 44 ± 2.1 days for greater one-horned rhinoceros (n = 4 cycles) and 15.5 ± 0.5 days for giraffes (n = 4 cycles). We observed pregnancies in a giant anteater, an okapi and a hippopotamus. We observed a strong positive Spearman correlation (r > 0.60) for individuals exhibiting estrous cycles. These first results indicate that the mini VIDAS® can be used for monitoring of the reproductive status of non-domesticated species and can be a useful tool for the reproductive management through fecal progesterone analysis. A simple extraction protocol was suitable for sample preparation of fecal progesterone metabolite analysis. Further studies using a larger number of individuals per species at different reproductive stages could confirm the relevance of mini VIDAS® in the zoo community.
开发动物园评估其饲养个体生殖状况的能力对于改善这些物种的饲养和管理至关重要。使用非侵入性技术，如粪便激素分析，已被证明是一种简单有效的方法。由生物梅里埃设计的 mini VIDAS®仪器用于人类和兽医医学，以评估包括血清或血浆孕酮在内的不同内分泌参数。本研究评估了 VIDAS®Progesterone（PRG）分析试剂盒通过适应动物园环境的简单样本提取方案监测粪便孕烯醇酮的功效。我们比较了 (1) 使用专为粪便孕烯醇酮分析而设计的特定分析试剂盒（维也纳兽医大学，奥地利）的 VIDAS®PRG 粪便图谱与用于霍加狓 (Okapia johnstoni)、独角犀 (Rhinoceros unicornis)、长颈鹿 (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) 和河马 (Hippopotamus amphibius) 的分析结果，(2) 使用迷你 VIDAS®PRG 血清图谱的 VIDAS®PRG 粪便图谱与非洲象 (Loxodonta Africana)、大食蚁兽 (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) 和白犀牛 (Ceratotherium simum) 的分析结果。Spearman 平均相关性分别为：非洲象 (n=2 动物) 0.6748，大食蚁兽 (n=1 动物) 0.7969，霍加狓 (n=2 动物) 0.7926，独角犀 (n=4 动物) 0.6072，长颈鹿 (n=4 动物) 0.6062 和河马 (n=2 动物) 0.5740。粪便孕烯醇酮分析显示多个物种存在发情周期：非洲象 (n=2 个周期) 为 12.5±0.5 周，霍加狓 (n=6 个周期) 为 15.3±1.1 天，独角犀 (n=4 个周期) 为 44±2.1 天，长颈鹿 (n=4 个周期) 为 15.5±0.5 天。我们观察到一只大食蚁兽、一只霍加狓和一只河马怀孕。我们观察到表现发情周期的个体存在强烈的正 Spearman 相关性 (r>0.60)。这些初步结果表明，mini VIDAS®可用于监测非驯化物种的生殖状况，并可通过粪便孕酮分析进行生殖管理的有用工具。一种简单的提取方案适用于粪便孕烯醇酮代谢物分析的样品制备。使用不同生殖阶段的更多个体对每个物种进行进一步研究，可以确认 mini VIDAS®在动物园界的相关性。
