Seasonality of reproduction in wild boar (Sus scrofa) assessed by fecal and plasmatic steroids.

The collection of biological samples through non-invasive techniques represents one way of monitoring in vivo physiological changes associated with reproductive activity. Such techniques are particularly important for the study of animal species in the wild. The goals of this study were 1) to evaluate fecal progestogen (P), estrogen (E), and androgen (A) by means of radioimmunoassays, in male and female wild boars culled in the Piedmont, Italy area; 2) to compare them with plasmatic concentrations and the animals' reproductive status; and 3) to assess variations in reproductive seasonality between two populations of wild boars living in a mountainous vs. a plain habitat in Piedmont. The results demonstrate a positive correlation between fecal and plasmatic steroid concentrations (r=0.46, 0.58, and 0.45 for plasma P(4) and P, E(2) and E, and T and A; P<0.05). Moreover, high fecal levels of both P and E (>170 ng/g and >100 pg/g respectively) were found in 70.6% of pregnant sows and in none of the non-pregnant animals, thus supporting the use of this technique for detecting pregnancy status in wild boar. Similar birth patterns were displayed by the mountain and plain populations, but births peaked significantly only in the mountain population, in the spring (46%, P<0.05, vs. other seasons). A corresponding autumnal peak of plasma testosterone concentrations in males was displayed only by the mountain population (7.4 vs.<2.0 ng/mL in the other seasons, P<0.05). The correlation between fecal and plasmatic steroid concentrations obtained in this study supports the applicability of this non-invasive sampling technique for monitoring reproductive status in wild boar, thus enabling a more informed and correct management of the species.

The case of an Sry-negative XX male Pug with an inguinal gonad.

A case of intersexuality in a Pug that was bought as a male in a pet shop is described. The dog was presented at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, University of Turin, for a reddish mass protruding from the prepuce. The mass had the aspect of an enlarged clitoris, with a caudoventral direction and a dorsal urethral ostium. A gonad was palpable in the left inguinal region. Laparotomy confirmed ultrasound detection of an abdominal uterine structure together with the right gonad. The histology of both gonads was similar, showing an exclusively masculine character, with seminiferous tubules lined only by Sertoli cells; the uterus showed a normal histological structure. Karyological analysis revealed a female karyotype (78,XX), and polymerase chain reaction showed the absence of Sry. The diagnosis was an XX male. The pathogenesis of the XX sex reversal syndrome in dogs is not completely understood, as Sry, the master gene regulating testis differentiation, is not present; to date, no genetic cause has been identified for this phenotypic condition in dogs. This case is unusual because the dog showed an inguinal testis, implying a partial activity of the mechanisms leading to abdominal testis translocation along a gubernaculum and transinguinal migration.