The Endocrinology Laboratory offers comprehensive expertise in endocrinological research and physiology. In addition to hormone analysis for assessing reproductive and stress status, we also provide the analysis of other important physiological parameters, such as markers of immune responses and bone health. Our extensive experience in developing and applying methods for measuring markers from blood, saliva, urine, and feces supports a wide range of research projects in biomedical as well as comparative field-based research.
Expertise
With over 25 years of experience in measuring steroid hormones using enzyme immunoassay methods, our laboratory has generated data used in more than 200 scientific publications.
- Immunological analysis: Validated methods for measuring sex hormones (estrogens, progestogens, androgens), stress hormones (glucocorticoids), and many other physiological markers in blood and saliva, as well as their metabolites in urine and feces for various primate species and other mammals.
- Reproductive status: Validated assays for monitoring female reproductive status.
- Stress physiology: Validated assays for assessing stress physiology.
- Energetic Status: Quantitative determination of C-peptide, glucocorticoids, and total T3 (thyroid hormone).
- Immune system responses: Quantitative determination of neopterin, suPAR, and immunoglobulin A.
- Training: Training of students and postdoctoral researchers in non-invasive hormone analysis methods from various European and non-European countries. Additionally, we offer laboratory internships as part of the Master’s and PhD programs at the University of Göttingen.
- Research: Supporting numerous scientific projects by providing physiological data and contributing to scientific publications with results from our laboratory.
- Reproductive management: Over 25 years of experience in providing non-invasive hormonal reproductive diagnostics for Asian and African elephants across Europe.
Thomas Steuer 
Grafik Heistermann, Foto Behringer 
Grafik Heistermann, Foto Behringer Latest Publications
- Behringer V; Deimel C. (2025)
Neopterin as a tool for primate ecoimmunology: Current knowledge, practical application, and new directions from captivity to the wild.
Am. J. Primatol. 87: e70081. - DOI - - Behringer V; Sonnweber R; Fruth B; Housman G; Douglas PH; Stevens JMG; Hohmann G; Kivell T. (2025)
Wild-living bonobos have low reproductive cost of bone loss during pregnancy and lactation.
Evol. Hum. Sci. 7: e27. - DOI - - Behringer V; Malaivijitnond S; Meesawat S; Sonnweber R; Heistermann M; Schülke O; Ostner J. (2025)
Assessing gestation and fetal sex in wild Assamese macaques using urinary estrogen analysis.
Am. J. Primatol. 87(7): e70065. - DOI - - Pethig L; Ozgulc A; Heistermann M; Fichtel C; Kappeler PM. (2025)
Prenatal sex determination illuminates the unusual adult sex ratio of a group-living lemur.
Biol. Lett. 21(2): 20240418 - DOI - - Goffe A; Niederbremer C; Heistermann M; Fischer J; Dal Pesco F. (2025)
No evidence for a link between dominance rank, unit size, and faecal glucocorticoid levels in a small sample of wild female Guinea baboons (Papio papio).
Int. J. Primatol. 46(1):158-181 - Anzà S; Heistermann M; Ostner J; Schülke O. (2025)
Early prenatal but not postnatal glucocorticoid exposure is associated with enhanced HPA axis activity into adulthood in a wild primate.
Proc. R. Soc. B-Biol. Sci. 292(2039): 20242418 - Prox P; Heistermann M; Rakotomala Z; Fichtel C; Kappeler PM. (2025)
Seasonal variation in aggression and physiological stress in wild female and male redfronted lemurs (Eulemur rufifrons).
Horm. Behav. 167: 105669
