Reproductive hormones | Function | African (n = 61) | Asian (n = 38) |
---|---|---|---|
Progestagens (ng/ml) | Produced by the corpora lutea of ovary, involved in pregnancy and menstrual cycle, concentrations increase after ovulation | Continuous Range: 0.052–0.607 Median: 0.17 Mean: 0.21 | Continuous Range: 0.052–0.562 Median: 0.25 Mean: 0.25 |
Prolactin PRL (ng/ml) | Produced by the anterior pituitary, promotes lactation, involved in normal follicular function, maintains homeostasis [118, 119] | Continuous Range: 2.44–105.24 Median: 11.57 Mean: 17.40 | Continuous Range: 2.34–21.26 Median: 5.25 Mean: 6.30 |
Luteinizing hormone LH (ng/ml) | Produced by the anterior pituitary, initiates ovulation, develops and maintains corpus luteum | Continuous Range: 0.59–2.64 Median: 0.99 Mean: 1.08 | Continuous Range: 0.47–3.45 Median: 1.24 Mean: 1.36 |
Follicle-stimulating hormone FSH (ng/ml) | Produced by the anterior pituitary, promotes follicular development | Continuous Range: 1.07–5.53 Median: 2.66 Mean: 2.73 | Continuous Range: 2.84–7.38 Median: 4.11 Mean: 4.42 |
Metabolic hormones | Function | African (n = 61) | Asian (n = 38) |
---|---|---|---|
Fecal glucocorticoid metabolites FGM (ng/g) | Produced by the adrenal cortex; functions in metabolizing carbohydrates, proteins, and fats [45, 46], induces glucose synthesis [47]. Often used as a measure of chronic physiological stress in wildlife [48] | Continuous Range: 21.02–249.53 Median: 84.22 Mean: 93.68 | Continuous Range: 20.92–328.29 Median: 108.20 Mean: 128.13 |
Thyroid stimulating hormone TSH (ng/ml) | Produced by the anterior pituitary, TSH stimulates the thyroid gland to produce T4, which can be transformed into T3 [120] | Continuous Range: 0.19–1.73 Median: 0.85 Mean: 0.88 | Continuous Range: 0.12–1.88 Median: 1.04 Mean: 1.07 |
Total triiodothyronine Total T3 (ng/dl) | Continuous Range: 38.04–117.64 Median: 85.7 Mean: 85.52 | Continuous Range: 52.06–165.89 Median: 95.97 Mean: 98.38 | |
Total thyroxine Total T4 (µg/dl) | Produced by the thyroid gland, T4 and T3 control metabolism, homeostasis, and growth [121, 122]. T4 and T3 circulate in plasma bound to transport protein and unbound. Unbound hormone is referred to as “free”, whereas “total” measures bound and unbound hormone. Free T4 moves to target organs where it is transformed to T3 | Continuous Range: 6.77–14.72 Median: 9.46 Mean: 9.75 | Continuous Range: 6.48–12.64 Median: 10.02 Mean: 10.20 |
Free thyroxine Free T4 (ng/dl) | Continuous Range: 0.49–1.17 Median: 0.84 Mean: 0.83 | Continuous Range: 0.44–1.23 Median: 0.71 Mean: 0.75 |