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Elevated whole brain arginine vasotocin with Aroclor 1254 exposure in two Syngnathus pipefishes

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Abstract

The neurohypophysial hormone arginine vasotocin (AVT) and the neuroendocrine system strongly interact with the rest of the teleostean endocrine system. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of exposure to an endocrine disruptor on whole brain AVT concentrations for the pipefishes Syngnathus floridae and S. fuscus. Following treatment over the entire brood period, AVT concentrations were significantly higher for Aroclor 1254-exposed, post-brooding males compared to controls for both species. Considering both previously documented seventeen-fold increases in AVT for brooding males with embryos in some developmental stages and changes in parental nutrient concentrations after Aroclor 1254 exposure, these data begin to address potential physiological mechanisms that may underlie paternal activities in syngnathid males.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the Marine Science Consortium of Wallops Island, VA, USA for the use of their facility and equipment. We also thank E. Anderson, B. Blaine, J. Marshall, A. Martin, H. Pagan, W. Sites, A. Shahan, B. Shock, and T. Stueckle for assistance in field collections and laboratory maintenance and J. Flores for the use of his sonicator. Pipefish collection was approved by the Commonwealth of Virginia Marine Resources Commission (permits 04-21, 05-18, and 06-56). All laboratory animal care and methods complied with regulations enforced by the West Virginia University Animal Care and Use Committee [protocols 03-0501 (November 2003) and 06-0503 (June 2006)]. This research was supported by the Oak Ridge Associated Universities, the West Virginia University Research Corporation, and the West Virginia University Department of Biology. Current funding is provided by the National Science Foundation grant IOS-0722120.

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  1. Christy M. Foran

    Present address: Environmental Risk Assessment Branch, United States Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Vicksburg, MS, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA

    Jennifer L. Ripley & Christy M. Foran

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  1. Jennifer L. Ripley
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  2. Christy M. Foran
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Correspondence to Jennifer L. Ripley.

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Ripley, J.L., Foran, C.M. Elevated whole brain arginine vasotocin with Aroclor 1254 exposure in two Syngnathus pipefishes. Fish Physiol Biochem 36, 917–921 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-009-9368-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-009-9368-9

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