1. Short-term telomere dynamics is associated with glucocorticoid levels in wild populations of roe deer
- Author
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Jean-Michel Gaillard, Maryline Pellerin, Corinne Régis, Benjamin Rey, Jeanne Duhayer, Hannah Froy, Emmanuelle Gilot-Fromont, Jeffrey Carbillet, Rachael V. Wilbourn, Louise Cheynel, Jean-François Lemaître, Sylvia Pardonnet, Hélène Verheyden, François Débias, Daniel H. Nussey, Sarah L. Underwood, Rupert Palme, A. J. Mark Hewison, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Unité de recherche Comportement et Ecologie de la Faune Sauvage (CEFS), Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS), University of Veterinary Medicine [Vienna] (Vetmeduni), Institute of Evolutionary Biology [Edinburgh], School of Biological Sciences [Edinburgh], University of Edinburgh-University of Edinburgh, Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology [Trondheim] (NTNU), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)-Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, Department of Anatomy Physiology and Pathology, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Cheshire CH64 7TE, UK., Office français de la biodiversité (OFB), BBSRC grant no. (BB/ L020769/1), OFB staff, ANR-15-CE32-0002,AGEX,Vieillissement sexe-spécifique en milieu naturel(2015), ANR-11-LABX-0048,ECOFECT,Dynamiques eco-évolutives des maladies infectieuses(2011), ANR-11-IDEX-0007,Avenir L.S.E.,PROJET AVENIR LYON SAINT-ETIENNE(2011), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Institute of Infection and Global Health [University of Liverpool, UK], University of Liverpool, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) : grant no. (BB/L020769/1), and Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary, and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
- Subjects
Male ,life history ,0106 biological sciences ,Senescence ,Aging ,senescence ,Physiology ,[SDV]Life Sciences [q-bio] ,Zoology ,capreolus capreolus ,fecal glucocorticoid metabolites ,Stress ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Biochemistry ,Environmental stress ,stress ,03 medical and health sciences ,Capreolus ,biology.animal ,[SDV.BA.ZV]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology/Vertebrate Zoology ,medicine ,Animals ,Life-history ,Life history ,Glucocorticoids ,Molecular Biology ,030304 developmental biology ,0303 health sciences ,biology ,Fecal glucocorticoid metabolites ,Deer ,aging ,Stressor ,[SDV.BBM.BM]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biochemistry, Molecular Biology/Molecular biology ,Telomere ,biology.organism_classification ,Roe deer ,Capreolus capreolus ,Female ,[SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology ,Glucocorticoid ,medicine.drug - Abstract
International audience; While evidence that telomere length is associated with health and mortality in humans and birds is accumulating, a large body of research is currently seeking to identify factors that modulate telomere dynamics. We tested the hypothesis that high levels of glucocorticoids in individuals under environmental stress should accelerate telomere shortening in two wild populations of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) living in different ecological contexts. From two consecutive annual sampling sessions, we found that individuals with faster rates of telomere shortening had higher concentrations of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites, suggesting a functional link between glucocorticoid levels and telomere attrition rate. This relationship was consistent for both sexes and populations. This finding paves the way for further studies of the fitness consequences of exposure to environmental stressors in wild vertebrates.
- Published
- 2021