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Testosterone, dominance signalling and immunosuppression in the house sparrow, Passer domesticus

journal contribution
posted on 2003-11-01, 00:00 authored by Kate BuchananKate Buchanan, M Evans, A Goldsmith
The immunocompetence handicap hypothesis (ICHH) suggests that dominance signals are costly because their development is controlled by testosterone, which is immunosuppressive. Signal control therefore links an increased disease risk with a high quality signal. The chest bib of the house sparrow, Passer domesticus, is a signal known to be related to dominance and under control of testosterone levels. We experimentally manipulated testosterone in male sparrows during the breeding season and again independently during the post-breeding period to test whether variation in levels of testosterone could cause variation in levels of immunocompetence. There was no effect of testosterone manipulation on the cell-mediated response of birds to phytohaemagglutinin injection, nor did testosterone levels appear to affect either white blood cell ratios or red blood cell counts. In contrast, both breeding season and post-breeding season testosterone levels had significant effects upon the humoral response of the birds to sheep red blood cell injections. However, whilst testosterone during the breeding season appeared to act immunosuppressively, the role of post-breeding levels is less clear. In concordance with a previous study, there was an indication that corticosterone is involved in mediating the immunosuppressive effects of testosterone. The strength of the secondary humoral response and the cell-mediated response were negatively related suggesting the possibility of a trade-off between the different arms of the immune system. These results provide some support for the ICHH as a mechanism promoting the evolution of costly badges of status, although the results question whether the immunosuppressive cost can be mediated by testosterone at the time of badge development.

History

Journal

Behavioral ecology and sociobiology

Volume

55

Issue

1

Pagination

50 - 59

Publisher

Springer Berlin / Heidelberg

Location

Berlin, Germany

ISSN

0340-5443

eISSN

1432-0762

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2003, Springer-Verlag