The effects of testosterone on a viral infection in greenfinches (Carduelis chloris): an experimental test of the immunocompetence-handicap hypothesis

The immunocompetence-handicap hypothesis suggests that the honesty of quality signals could be guaranteed if testosterone (T) suppresses immune function while enhancing male ornaments. In addition, it has been proposed that the cost of enhancing ornaments should be highest for males with small ornaments. Recently, the assertion that T causes obligate immunosuppression has been questioned. In this study, we tested whether elevated T levels would increase susceptibility to a viral infection, and whether this hypothesized effect would be most pronounced in males with small ornaments. We surgically inserted T implants into 15 male greenfinches (Carduelis chloris) and control implants into a further 15 males. All birds were then infected with a naturally occurring virus (Sindbis virus, Alphavirus genus), and each bird's daily viraemia (blood virus concentration) was measured for seven days. The specific antibody response was measured for eight weeks. T-implanted males did not exhibit increased viraemia or decreased antibody response, and males with small and large ornaments did not respond differently to T implantation. We did, however, find that T implantation decreased viraemia early in the course of the infection and increased viraemia late in the infection. Thus, our results demonstrate that T may act both to increase and to decrease viraemia.