The influence of ovulation and oviposition on corticosterone levels in the plasma of laying hens

doi:10.1016/0016-6480(81)90016-2

General and Comparative Endocrinology

Volume 44, Issue 3, July 1981, Pages 382-388

https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-6480(81)90016-2 Get rights and content

Abstract

Corticosterone levels were measured in the peripheral plasma of laying hens by radioimmunoassay. The accuracy of this method is described. The corticosterone level starts to increase >1 hr before egg laying and falls to normal level rapidly after egg laying. When a cage is provided with a laying nest the laying behavior changes but the corticosterone pattern remains unchanged. The increases in plasma corticosterone are also present when the eggs were expelled 5 and 16 hr prematurely. This increase is partly reduced when the last ruptured follicle was removed 2–4 hr after ovulation. A second but smaller peak in plasma corticosterone levels was found at an average time of 34 min after oviposition. This peak is absent after the last egg of a clutch and most probably should be ascribed to ovulation.

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Cited by (24)

Effects of acute stressors experienced by five strains of layer breeders on measures of stress and fear in their offspring
2021, Physiology and Behavior
Citation Excerpt :
On the morning of each incubation day, Vehicle and CORT solutions were prepared. The average weight of egg content, which is estimated to be 90% of total egg weight [44], was 50, 50 and 59 g per hen age group; thus, a volume of 50 μL of either CORT or Vehicle solutions were injected into eggs from 32 to 52 week-old breeders, while 60 μL was injected into eggs from 72 week-old breeders. Injections were performed using a sterile 23-gauge needle through a small hole that was perforated through the silicone layer using an egg piercer.
Stressors experienced by layer breeders during egg production can lead to changes in the egg hormone content, potentially impacting their offspring, the commercial layers. Genetic differences might also affect the offspring's susceptibility to maternal experiences. In this study, we tested if maternal stress affects measures of stress and fear in five strains of layer breeders: commercial brown 1 & 2, commercial white 1 & 2 and a pure line White Leghorn. Each strain was equally separated into two groups: “Maternal Stress” (MS), where hens were subjected to a series of 8 consecutive days of acute psychological stressors, and “Control,” which received routine husbandry. Additional eggs from Control were injected either with corticosterone diluted in a vehicle solution (“CORT”) or just “Vehicle.” Stress- and fear-responses of the offspring were measured in a plasma corticosterone test and a combined human approach and novel object test. While the stress treatments did not affect the measured endpoints in the offspring, significant strain differences were found. The offspring of the white strains showed a higher physiological response compared to brown strains and the White 2 offspring was the least fearful strain in the human approach test. Our study found that neither the acute psychological stressors experienced by layer breeders nor the egg injections of corticosterone affected the parameters tested in their offspring. Post hoc power analyses suggest that the lack of treatment effects might be due to a small sample size (type II error). Although studies on larger flocks of layers are still needed, our results provide an initial understanding of an important subject, as in poultry production, layer breeders are often subjected to short-term stressors. In addition, our results suggest the dissociation between the physiological and behavioural parameters of stress response in laying hens, showing that increased concentrations of plasma corticosterone in response to stress might not be directly associated with high levels of fear.
Effects of prenatal stress and genetics on embryonic survival and offspring growth of laying hens
2020, Poultry Science
Citation Excerpt :
The CORT treatment group received a final concentration of 10 ng of corticosterone/mL of egg content (corticosterone: Sigma-Aldrich Chemical Co., St. Louis, MO) diluted in sesame oil (Fisher Scientific Co., Fair Lawn, NJ), while the vehicle treatment group received the same concentration of sesame oil only. The average weight of egg content (90% of egg weight) (Beuving and Vonder, 1981) per offspring group was 50, 50, and 59 g. Thus, 50 μL of solution was injected into eggs from breeders of 32 and 52 wk of age, whereas 60 μL was injected into eggs from 72-wk-old hens. When breeders were at 25 wk of age, we collected eggs from all strains and conducted a pilot study to estimate hatchability levels.
Early-life exposure to stressors can shape the phenotype of the offspring resulting in changes that may affect their prehatch and posthatch development. This can be modeled indirectly through maternal exposure to stressors (natural model) or by offspring exposure to stress hormones (pharmacological model). In this study, both models were used to investigate the effects of genetic line on hatchability, late embryonic mortality, sex ratio, and body weight until 17 wk of age. To form the parent stock, fertilized eggs of 4 commercial genetic lines — two brown (brown 1 and 2), two white (white 1 and 2), and a pure line White Leghorn — were incubated, hatched, and housed identically in 4 flocks of 27 birds (24 females and 3 males) per strain. Each strain was equally separated into 2 groups: “maternal stress,” where hens were subjected to a series of acute psychological stressors (e.g., physical restraint, transportation) for 8 D before egg collection, and “control,” where hens received routine husbandry. At 3 maternal ages, fertile eggs from both treatments were collected, and additional eggs from the control group were injected with corticosterone (10 ng/mL egg content) (“CORT”). A “vehicle” treatment was included to account for effects of egg manipulation. Each maternal age comprised a replicate over time. Eggs were incubated and hatched, and the offspring (N = 1,919) were brooded until 17 wk under identical conditions. The results show that prenatal stress interacted with strain to decrease embryonic survival and growth. Among all strains, brown 2 was consistently the most affected line in both prehatch and posthatch development. Our study shows that embryonic survival and offspring growth are mostly affected by the pharmacological model and that strain differences may increase susceptibility to prenatal stress. Moreover, it suggests that the natural stressor model may be useful for quantifying the response of the mother to stressors, whereas the pharmacological model may be useful for quantifying the response of the embryo to increased levels of corticosterone.
Is there a role for corticosterone in expression of abnormal behaviour in restricted-fed fowls?
1997, Physiology and Behavior
Savory, C. J. and J. S. Mann. Is there a role for corticosterone in expression of abnormal behaviour in restricted-fed fowls? Physiol Behav 62(1) 7–13, 1997.—Growing parent stock (breeders) of meat-type chickens (broilers), subjected routinely to chronic food restriction, show increased pacing before a single daily meal and increased drinking and pecking at non-food objects (oral stereotypies) afterwards. Expression of these activities is correlated positively with the level of restriction imposed, and is thought to be controlled mainly by central dopaminergic mechanisms. There is published evidence that glucocorticoids can amplify dopamine mediated behaviours, and this paper describes four experiments examining the relationship between corticosterone and behaviour in individually caged broiler breeders. In Experiment 1 (with 3 levels of food restriction), plasma corticosterone concentration was correlated positively with the level of restriction imposed when blood samples were taken in the morning, but not when they were taken in the afternoon. This may be because corticosterone level declines from morning to afternoon with mild but not severe restriction. In Experiment 2 (severe restriction only), plasma corticosterone level did not change significantly with time of day, and mean values of individual birds were not correlated with their observed times spent in oral stereotypies. In Experiment 3 (severe restriction), object pecking increased in a dose-related way after systemic injection of 1–4 mg/kg corticosterone (significant) and 7.5–30 IU/kg ACTH (not significant), and 10–40 mg/kg metyrapone (corticosterone synthesis inhibitor) had no effect. In Experiment 4 (severe restriction), 180 mg/day metyrapone administered in food for 5 days reduced the plasma corticosterone response to injection of 15 IU/kg ACTH on the fourth day, but otherwise had no effect. Significant increases in drinker directed activity after injection of ACTH on the fourth day and 4 mg/kg corticosterone on the fifth day coincided with greatly elevated plasma levels of corticosterone. It is concluded that the oral stereotypies of restricted-fed broiler breeders do respond to induced increases in plasma corticosterone concentration that are supra-physiological, but there may be only a weak association between behaviour and corticosterone within the physiological range.
Tonic immobility and heterophil/lymphocyte responses of the domestic fowl to corticosterone infusion
1988, Physiology and Behavior
The tonic immobility (TI) fear reactions, plasma corticosterone concentrations and heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratios of adult laying hens were measured before and at intervals of 4 and 11 days after the subcutaneous implantation of osmotic minipumps delivering either corticosterone solution (15 μg/hr) or only polyethylene glycol vehicle. The dummy pumps exerted no apparent behavioral or endocrine effects, whereas tonic immobility was significantly prolonged and circulating corticosterone concentrations significantly elevated at 4 and 11 days after implantation of the corticosterone minipumps. H/L ratios were significantly elevated from pre-treatment levels in both groups. However, H/L ratios were considerably higher at both post-treatment points among birds receiving corticosterone rather than vehicle. The present findings suggest that chronic elevations of plasma corticosterone not only alter the haematological profile but may also predispose birds to react more fearfully to alarming stimulation.
Comparison of the adrenal sensitivity to ACTH of laying hens with immobilization and plasma baseline levels of corticosterone
1986, General and Comparative Endocrinology
The effects of mammalian ACTH (0.01–10.0 IU/kg) given intraarterially on plasma corticosterone levels in laying hens were determined. A rectilinear dose-response relationship was found, y = 24.545 + 8.691x. Daily ACTH injections of 0.1 IU/kg on 3 successive days showed a good reproducibility in response in plasma corticosterone levels. Immobilization by hand also increases plasma corticosterone to a plateau level of about 4 ng/ml. The effects of ACTH and immobilization in individual birds showed a good correlation (r = 0.87). A rather low correlation (r = 0.49) existed between individual baseline levels of plasma corticosterone and adrenal sensitivity for ACTH. The adrenal sensitivity for ACTH was nearly two times higher in the morning than in the evening. A diurnal pattern, however, could not be shown in the corticosterone response to immobilization.
Incidence of a heterosis effect in adrenal responsiveness to ACTH stimulation in the chicken
1986, Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology -- Part A: Physiology
- 1.
  1. No differences exist between basal plasma corticosterone concentrations of broilers ferais and first generation large crossbreds (White leghorn x New Hampshire).
- 2.
  2. Crossbreds show near double adrenal responsiveness to synthetic ACTH administration, indicating a heterosis effect for this characteristic.
- 3.
  3. Extraction of chicken plasma with 30% aqueous polyethylene glycol solution eliminates the need for tedious and expensive pre-assay purification of plasma.

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The influence of ovulation and oviposition on corticosterone levels in the plasma of laying hens

Abstract

Gen. Comp. Endocrinol

Steroids

Poultry Sci

Poultry Sci

Poultry Sci

Poultry Sci

Anim. Behav

Anim. Behav

Daily rhythm of corticosterone in laying hens and the influence of egg laying

J. Reprod. Fert