From molecules to mammals: multi-level hormone analysis in the field and lab

内分泌系统是动物界物种的关键调节机制。 激素是由内分泌系统产生的，控制着广泛的动物行为和生物过程（例如攻击、生殖、衰老、应激反应）。 此外，接触环境中的激素及其合成模拟物会对动物产生重要影响。 例如，水生动物和两栖动物暴露于内分泌干扰化学品，如合成雌激素，可能会改变发育和繁殖。 测量血浆、组织或动物环境中的激素浓度对于了解发育和行为的内分泌调节至关重要。 然而，从其生物基质中提取用于测量的激素是复杂的，特别是当处理富含脂质和/或蛋白质的样品时，例如蛋黄，整个动物样品（小鱼，浮游生物）和组织（大脑，肝脏，肌肉）。固相萃取（SPE）是一种方法，通过它可以在免疫测定，HPLC等下游分析之前纯化样品。我们正在申请资金购买一个独特的最先进的SPE机器人，以准确可靠地从上述样品类型中提取激素。该机器人系统将实现高通量样品制备，以便可以容易地对纯化的激素提取物进行定量。 所要求的设备是申请中强调的四个研究项目的基础，每周将用于制备数百个样品。

The endocrine system is a key regulatory mechanism in species across the animal kingdom. Hormones are produced by the endocrine system and control a wide range of animal behaviours and biological processes (e.g. aggression, reproduction, aging, stress responses). Also, exposure to hormones and their synthetic mimics in the environment can have important effects of animals. For example, aquatic and amphibious animals exposed to endocrine disrupting chemicals such as synthetic estrogens, can have altered development and reproduction. Measuring hormone concentrations in plasma, tissue or from an animal's environment is critical to understand the endocrine regulation of development and behavior. However, extracting hormones for measurement from their biological matrices is complicated, particularly when working with samples that are rich in lipids and/or proteins such as egg yolk, whole animal samples (small fish, plankton) and tissues (brain, liver, muscle). Solid phase extraction (SPE) is one method by which samples can be purified prior to downstream analysis with immunoassays, HPLC, etc. We are requesting funds to purchase a unique and state-of-the-art SPE robot to accurately and reliably conduct hormone extractions from the above mentioned sample types. This robot system will enable high-throughput sample preparation so that purified hormone extracts can be readily quantified. The requested equipment is fundamental to the four research programs highlighted in the application and will be used to prepare hundreds of samples each week.