Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression

Abstract Androgens, namely 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), have a central role in male fish reproductive physiology and are thought to be involved in both aggression and social signalling. Aggressive encounters occur frequently in social species, and fights may cause energy depletion, injury and loss of...

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Autores principales:	João L. Saraiva, Tina Keller-Costa, Peter C. Hubbard, Ana Rato, Adelino V. M. Canário
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2017
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/166f9d72b8794aa598f1820930f67a62
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:166f9d72b8794aa598f1820930f67a622021-12-02T16:06:07ZChemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression10.1038/s41598-017-07558-12045-2322https://doaj.org/article/166f9d72b8794aa598f1820930f67a622017-08-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-07558-1https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Androgens, namely 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), have a central role in male fish reproductive physiology and are thought to be involved in both aggression and social signalling. Aggressive encounters occur frequently in social species, and fights may cause energy depletion, injury and loss of social status. Signalling for social dominance and fighting ability in an agonistic context can minimize these costs. Here, we test the hypothesis of a ‘chemical diplomacy’ mechanism through urinary signals that avoids aggression and evokes an androgen response in receiver males of Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus). We show a decoupling between aggression and the androgen response; males fighting their mirror image experience an unresolved interaction and a severe drop in urinary 11KT. However, if concurrently exposed to dominant male urine, aggression drops but urinary 11KT levels remain high. Furthermore, 11KT increases in males exposed to dominant male urine in the absence of a visual stimulus. The use of a urinary signal to lower aggression may be an adaptive mechanism to resolve disputes and avoid the costs of fighting. As dominance is linked to nest building and mating with females, the 11KT response of subordinate males suggests chemical eavesdropping, possibly in preparation for parasitic fertilizations.João L. SaraivaTina Keller-CostaPeter C. HubbardAna RatoAdelino V. M. CanárioNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 7, Iss 1, Pp 1-9 (2017)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q João L. Saraiva Tina Keller-Costa Peter C. Hubbard Ana Rato Adelino V. M. Canário Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
description	Abstract Androgens, namely 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), have a central role in male fish reproductive physiology and are thought to be involved in both aggression and social signalling. Aggressive encounters occur frequently in social species, and fights may cause energy depletion, injury and loss of social status. Signalling for social dominance and fighting ability in an agonistic context can minimize these costs. Here, we test the hypothesis of a ‘chemical diplomacy’ mechanism through urinary signals that avoids aggression and evokes an androgen response in receiver males of Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus). We show a decoupling between aggression and the androgen response; males fighting their mirror image experience an unresolved interaction and a severe drop in urinary 11KT. However, if concurrently exposed to dominant male urine, aggression drops but urinary 11KT levels remain high. Furthermore, 11KT increases in males exposed to dominant male urine in the absence of a visual stimulus. The use of a urinary signal to lower aggression may be an adaptive mechanism to resolve disputes and avoid the costs of fighting. As dominance is linked to nest building and mating with females, the 11KT response of subordinate males suggests chemical eavesdropping, possibly in preparation for parasitic fertilizations.
format	article
author	João L. Saraiva Tina Keller-Costa Peter C. Hubbard Ana Rato Adelino V. M. Canário
author_facet	João L. Saraiva Tina Keller-Costa Peter C. Hubbard Ana Rato Adelino V. M. Canário
author_sort	João L. Saraiva
title	Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
title_short	Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
title_full	Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
title_fullStr	Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
title_full_unstemmed	Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
title_sort	chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2017
url	https://doaj.org/article/166f9d72b8794aa598f1820930f67a62
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_version_	1718385071477489664

Chemical diplomacy in male tilapia: urinary signal increases sex hormone and decreases aggression

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