Androstatrienes/pharmacology; Animals; Dihydrotestosterone/pharmacology; Estradiol/pharmacology; Female; Male; Orchiectomy; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Sexual Behavior, Animal/drug effects; Sexual Maturation/drug effects; Social Environment; Testosterone/physiology
Abstract :
[en] Male rats, neonatally treated with ATD (1,4,6-androstatriene-3,17-dione), which blocks the aromatization of testosterone into estradiol (E2), were tested for adult partner preference behavior (PPB; estrous female vs. active male). Castration caused a decrease in preference for the female partner in all males, with ATD males showing lower preference for the female partner than controls. Long-term castrated males did not show preference for either partner. Precastration levels of PPB in control males occurred after treatment with E2 or dihydrotestosterone (DHT) plus E2. DHT alone had no effect on PPB. With E2 alone, the ATD males clearly preferred the male partner. When DHT was added, these ATD males showed no preference for either partner or a low preference for the female partner. In conclusion, adult PPB in male rats is activated by endogenous testosterone or by both its metabolites (DHT and E2) or by E2 alone. ATD males showed a much lower preference for the female. There was a differential effect of DHT and E2: DHT had no effect, but E2 clearly caused ATD males to prefer the male partner and control males to prefer the female partner.
Research center :
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Disciplines :
Neurosciences & behavior
Author, co-author :
Bakker, Julie ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des sciences biomédicales et précliniques > Biologie de la différenciation sexuelle du cerveau
Brand, T.
van Ophemert, J.
Slob, A. K.
Language :
English
Title :
Hormonal regulation of adult partner preference behavior in neonatally ATD-treated male rats.
Adkins-Regan E. Sex hormones and sexual orientation in animals. Psychobiology 16 (1988) 335-347
Ahlenius S., Larsson K., Svensson L., Hjorth S., Carlsson A., Lindberg P., Wikström H., Sanchez D., Arvidsson L.E., Hacksell U., and Nilsson J.L.G. Effects of a new type of 5-HT receptor agonist on male rat sexual behavior. Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior 15 (1981) 785-792
Baum M.J. Differentation of coital behavior in mammals: A comparative analysis. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews 3 (1979) 265-284
Beatty W.W. Gonadal hormones and sex differences in nonreproductive behaviors. In: Gerall A.A., Moltz H., and Ward I.L. (Eds). Handbook of behavioral biology Vol. 11 (1992), Plenum Press, New York 85-128
Brand T., Houtsmuller E.J., and Slob A.K. Neonatal programming of adult partner preference in male rats. In: Haug M., Whalen R.E., Aron C., and Olsen K.L. (Eds). The development of sex differences and similarities in behavior. (1993), Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherands
Brand T., Kroonen J., Mos J., and Slob A.K. Adult partner preference and sexual behavior of male rats affected by perinatal endocrine manipulations. Hormones and Behavior 25 (1991) 323-341
Brand T., and Slob A.K. Neonatal organization of adult partner preference behavior in male rats. Physiology & Behavior 49 (1991) 107-111
Clark J.T., Smith E.R., and Davidson J.M. Evidence for the modulation of sexual behavior by α-adrenoceptors in male rats. Neuroendocrinology 41 (1985) 36-43
Davis P.G., Chaptal C.V., and McEwen B.S. Independence of the differentiation of masculine and feminine sexual behavior in rats. Hormones and Behavior 12 (1979) 12-19
De Jong F.H., Hey A.H., and van der Molen H.J. Effect of gonadotrophins on the secretion of oestradiol-17B and testosterone by the rat testis. Journal of Endocrinology 57 (1973) 277-284
Edwards D.A., and Pfeifle J.K. Hormonal control of receptivity, proceptivity and sexual motivation. Physiology & Behavior 30 (1983) 437-443
Fadem B.H., and Barfield R.J. Neonatal hormonal influences on the development of proceptive and receptive feminine sexual behavior in rats. Hormones and Behavior 15 (1981) 282-288
Gorski R.A., Harlan R.E., Jacobson C.D., Shryne J.E., and Southem A.M. Evidence for the existence of a sexually dimorphic nucleus in the preoptic area of the rat. Journal of Comparative Neurology 193 (1980) 529-539
Goy R.W., and McEwen B.S. Sexual differentiation of the brain (1980), MIT press, Cambridge, MA
Haensel S.M., Mos J., Olivier B., and Slob A.K. Sex behavior of male and female Wistar rats affected by the serotonin agonist 8-OH-DPAT. Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior 40 (1991) 221-228
Houtsmuller, E.J., Brand, T., de Jonge, F.H., Joosten, R., van de Poll, N.E., & Slob, A.K. (1993). Effects of perinatal exposure to the aromatase inhibitor ATD on differentiation of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area (SDN-POA), partner preference, and sexual behavior in male rats. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Kaplan M.E., and McGinnis M.Y. Effects of ATD on male sexual behavior and androgen receptor binding: A reexamination of the aromatization hypothesis. Hormones and Behavior 23 (1989) 10-26
Kirk R.E. Experimental design: Procedures for the behavioral sciences (1968), Brooks/Cole, Belmont, CA
Merkx J. Effects of neonatal testicular hormones on preference behaviour in the rat. Behavioural Brain Research 12 (1984) 1-7
Merkx J., Slob A.K., and van der Werff ten Bosch J.J. Preference for an estrous female over a non-estrous female evinced by female rats requires dihydrotestosterone plus estradiol. Hormones and Behavior 23 (1989) 466-472
Perlman G. The UNIX/STAT handbook: Data analysis programs on UNIX and MSDOS (1986), Wang Institute, Tyngsboro, MA
Slob A.K., de Klerk L.W.L., and Brand T. Homosexual and heterosexual partner preference in ovariectomized female rats: Effects of testosterone, estradiol, and mating experience. Physiology & Behavior 41 (1987) 571-576
Verjans H.L., Cooke B.A., de Jong F.H., de Jong C.M.M., and van der Molen H.J. Evaluation of a radioimmunoassay for testosterone estimation. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry 4 (1973) 665-676
Ward I.L., and Ward O.B. Sexual behavior differentiation: Effects of prenatal manipulations in rats. In: Adler N., Pfaff D., and Goy R.W. (Eds). Handbook of behavioral neurobiology Vol. 7 (1985), Plenum Press, New York 77-97
