E gave subcutaneous injections (0.1 ml) of leptin dissolved in saline (2 ng per g

E gave subcutaneous injections (0.1 ml) of leptin dissolved in saline (2 ng per g body mass of toad) or saline after per day for six sequential days. The sixth injection was given 1 h before each behavioral trial. Our dose was modest in comparison with equivalent (i.e., subcutaneous) therapies employed previously in frogs [12]. Particularly, Crespi and Denver [12] identified that two g of leptin per tadpole (corresponding to about 1 g per gram physique weight) reduced weight get. Sadly, assays for amphibian leptin don’t exist at this time, so we can’t relate our leptin treatment to endogenous leptin levels.Camptothecins Gene ID Appetite assayWe initially examined the impact of our injections on prey-catching behavior as a measure of appetite. 1 week ahead of trials, females weren’t fed. Following leptin (n = 9) or saline (n = 9) treatment (as above), we presented each female with about 50 crickets in a covered arena (0.six m x 0.three m x 0.3 m) and we counted the cumulative attacks made by every toad in 3 min intervals over the course of 15 min.Phonotaxis testsWe examined the effects of leptin (n = 30) or saline (n = 20) on mating preferences in twochoice phonotaxis trials using prior procedures. Specifically, we placed every single female in the center of a circular water-filled IL-6 site wading pool (1.eight m diameter). Every female was initially placed on a central platform (above water level) equidistant involving two speakers broadcasting either conspecific or heterospecific calls. The stimuli happen to be used previously and were composed of average call traits for every single species [11, 13]. One hour following the final leptin injection (see above), we tested every female in back-to-back trials in shallow (six cm) and deep (30 cm) pools; the pond depth of your initial trial was randomly assigned for every single female to manage for order effects. We scored a female as preferring a contact stimulus if it approached and touched a speaker. This is a dependable strategy for assessing mate selection due to the fact females initiate mating by closely approaching or touching males [14]. We scored females as non-responsive if they did not choose a stimulus within 30 minutes. We also recorded the latency to choose a call. For the reason that leptin-treated females preferred heterospecific calls inside the deep-water environment (see Outcomes), we asked irrespective of whether this preference was repeatable by testing an more group ofPLOS One | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0125981 April 28,3/Leptin and mate choiceleptin-treated females (n = 21) in deep water in four trials. We gave the initial two tests in backto-back trials 1 hour following the final leptin injection, as described above. We then gave the females a single week with no therapy before starting the course of injections once more, followed by the last two tests in back-to-back trials. We measured repeatability because the total number of trials in which every female selected the heterospecific call.Statistical analysisTo identify if leptin impacted appetite, we employed a repeated measures ANOVA with hormone therapy as a between-subjects issue, time as a within-subjects aspect, and their interaction to detect remedy effects on prey attacks. In the initial phonotaxis experiment, we applied contingency table analysis with Fisher’s exact tests to determine if leptin-treated females expressed different patterns of preference from saline-treated females. Also, to test whether or not leptin affected latency to opt for, we employed a mixed effects model with hormone therapy, water level, and their interaction as fixed.