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Arteaga-Silva M, Limón-Morales O, Bonilla-Jaime H, Vigueras-Villaseñor RM, Rojas-Castañeda J, Hernández-Rodríguez J, Montes S, Hernández-González M, Ríos C. Effects of postnatal exposure to cadmium on male sexual incentive motivation and copulatory behavior: Estrogen and androgen receptors expression in adult brain rat. Reprod Toxicol 2023; 120:108445. [PMID: 37482142 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2023.108445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Revised: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
There are numerous evidence showing that cadmium (Cd) is an endocrine disruptor that exerts multiple toxic effects at different reproductive levels, including male sexual behavior (MSB). The effect of early exposure to Cd on sexual incentive motivation (SIM) and MSB in adult stage, and the immunoreactivity of receptors for hormones such as estrogens and androgens in brain regions that are relevant for the SIM and MSB display, have not been studied until now. The present study evaluated the effects of 0.5 and 1 mg/kg CdCl2 from day 1-56 of postnatal life on SIM and MSB in adults rats, as well as serum testosterone concentrations, Cd concentration in blood, testis, and brain areas, and the immunoreactivity in estrogen receptors (ER-α and -β), and androgen receptor (AR) in the olfactory bulbs (OB), medial preoptic area (mPOA), and medial amygdala (MeA). Our results showed that both doses of Cd decreased SIM and MSB, accompanied by low serum concentrations of testosterone. Also, there was a significant reduction in immunoreactivity of ER-α and AR in mPOA, and a significant reduction in AR in MeA on male rats treated with Cd 1 mg/kg. These results show that exposure to high doses of Cd in early postnatal life could alter the correct integration of hormonal signals in the brain areas that regulate and display SIM and MSB in adult male rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcela Arteaga-Silva
- Departamento de Biología de la Reproducción, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Av. Ferrocarril San Rafael Atlixco No. 186, Col. Leyes de Reforma 1ª, Sección, Alcaldía Iztapalapa, C.P. 09340, A.P. 55-535, Ciudad de México, México.
| | - Ofelia Limón-Morales
- Departamento de Biología de la Reproducción, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Av. Ferrocarril San Rafael Atlixco No. 186, Col. Leyes de Reforma 1ª, Sección, Alcaldía Iztapalapa, C.P. 09340, A.P. 55-535, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Herlinda Bonilla-Jaime
- Departamento de Biología de la Reproducción, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Av. Ferrocarril San Rafael Atlixco No. 186, Col. Leyes de Reforma 1ª, Sección, Alcaldía Iztapalapa, C.P. 09340, A.P. 55-535, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Rosa María Vigueras-Villaseñor
- Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, Calzada México Xochimilco No. 101, Colonia San Lorenzo Huipulco, Tlalpan, CP 14370 Ciudad de México, México
| | - Julio Rojas-Castañeda
- Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, Calzada México Xochimilco No. 101, Colonia San Lorenzo Huipulco, Tlalpan, CP 14370 Ciudad de México, México
| | - Joel Hernández-Rodríguez
- Cuerpo Académico de Investigación en Salud de la Licenciatura en Quiropráctica (CA-UNEVE-01), Universidad Estatal del Valle de Ecatepec, Estado de México 55210, México
| | - Sergio Montes
- Unidad Académica Multidisciplinaria Reynosa-Aztlán, Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas, Lago de Chapala y Calle 16, Aztlán, Reynosa 88740, México
| | - Marisela Hernández-González
- Instituto de Neurociencias, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad de Guadalajara, Francisco de Quevedo No. 180, Col. Arcos Vallarta, 44130 Guadalajara, Jalisco, México
| | - Camilo Ríos
- Dirección de Investigación, Instituto Nacional de Rehabilitación, Secretaría de Salud, Ciudad de México 14389, México
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Rouver WDN, Delgado NTB, Gonçalves LT, Giesen JAS, Santos da Costa C, Merlo E, Damasceno Costa E, Lemos VS, Bernardes Graceli J, Santos RLD. Sex hormones and vascular reactivity: a temporal evaluation in resistance arteries of male rats. J Mol Endocrinol 2023; 70:e220147. [PMID: 36476761 DOI: 10.1530/jme-22-0147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The role of androgens in vascular reactivity is controversial, particularly regarding their age-related actions. The objective of this study was to conduct a temporal evaluation of the vascular reactivity of resistance arteries of young male rats, as well as to understand how male sex hormones can influence the vascular function of these animals. Endothelium-mediated relaxation was characterized in third-order mesenteric arteries of 10-, 12-, 16-, and 18w (week-old) male rats. Concentration-response curves to acetylcholine (ACh, 0.1 nmol/L-10 µmol/L) were constructed in arteries previously contracted with phenylephrine (PE, 3 µmol/L), before and after the use of nitric oxide synthase or cyclooxygenase inhibitors. PE concentration-response curves (1 nmol/L-100 μmol/L) were also built. The levels of vascular nitric oxide, superoxide anion, and hydrogen peroxide were assessed and histomorphometry analysis was performed. The 18w group had impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation. All groups showed prostanoid-independent and nitric oxide-dependent vasodilatory response, although this dependence seems to be smaller in the 18w group. The 18w group had the lowest nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide production, in addition to the highest superoxide anion levels. Besides functional impairment, 18w animals showed morphological differences in third-order mesenteric arteries compared with the other groups. Our data show that time-dependent exposure to male sex hormones appears to play an important role in the development of vascular changes that can lead to impaired vascular reactivity in mesenteric arteries, which could be related to the onset of age-related cardiovascular changes in males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wender do Nascimento Rouver
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
| | | | - Leticia Tinoco Gonçalves
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
| | | | - Charles Santos da Costa
- Department of Morphology, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Merlo
- Department of Morphology, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Damasceno Costa
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Virginia Soares Lemos
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Jones Bernardes Graceli
- Department of Morphology, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
| | - Roger Lyrio Dos Santos
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Vitoria, ES, Brazil
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Hernández-Arteaga E, Hernández-González M, Bonilla-Jaime H, Guevara MA, Ågmo A. Pubertal stress decreases sexual motivation and supresses the relation between cerebral theta rhythms and testosterone levels in adult male rats. Brain Res 2020; 1745:146937. [PMID: 32505750 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2020.146937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Revised: 05/27/2020] [Accepted: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
This study evaluated the effect of stress during puberty on sexual motivation and the correlation between serum testosterone levels (T) and the absolute power of the theta electroencephalographic rhythms, recorded in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) of adult male rats. Thirty males of the stressed group (SG, housed 1 per cage from days 25-50) and 30 controls (CG, housed 5 per cage), were tested in copulatory interactions at 90 days of age. The above mentioned physiological parameters were obtained during the awake-quiet state in a sub-group without sexual motivation (WSM, n = 15, stimulated with a nonreceptive female) and a sub-group with sexual motivation (SM, n = 15, stimulated with a receptive-female). Pearson correlations (r) between these parameters were calculated for each sub-group and brain structure and then compared between sub-groups. SG presented higher mount and intromission latencies than CG. While CG-WSM showed a positive r between T levels and theta band (0.23-0.59), those CG-SM presented a negative r (-0.23 to -0.67). An r that tended towards zero (-0.31 to 0.29) was obtained in both stressed sub-groups. This study shows that pubertal stress suppresses the relation between serum T levels and theta rhythms in the mPFC and BLA in adult male rats. This is one of the first studies evaluating the association between these two physiological parameters specifically in the context of sexual motivation; thus increasing our understanding of the effect of pubertal stress on prefrontal-amygdaline functioning during the sexually-motivated state in male rats.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Herlinda Bonilla-Jaime
- Departamento de Biología de la Reproducción, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Iztapalapa, Mexico
| | - Miguel Angel Guevara
- Instituto de Neurociencias, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
| | - Anders Ågmo
- Psychology Department, Tromsø University, Tromsø, Norway
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Ayala Guanga L, Astiz S, Nieto Escandon P, Dutan Saramago J, Rodas Carpio R, Pesantez-Pacheco JL, Rosales Jaramillo C. Relationship between testosterone and penile spicules in Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus). Theriogenology 2020; 158:368-374. [PMID: 33038822 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2020.09.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2020] [Revised: 09/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/27/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the physiology of penile spicules in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) may improve their management in large-scale production guinea systems. Here we examined whether penis spicule development depends on testosterone and whether exogenous testosterone can reverse penile spicule atrophy in castrated guinea pigs. The relationship between total testosterone (TT) and the development of penile spicules (DPS) in guinea pigs was explored in two experiments. The first experiment described the TT and DPS curves in non-castrated guinea pigs (E1-G1) and guinea pigs castrated on day 35 (E1-G2). In the second experiment, the dose-dependent effect of the administration of exogenous testosterone (ET) was evaluated during DPS in Group 1 (E2-G1; castrated guinea pigs + 125 μg ET on days 65 and 80 of age), Group 2 (E2-G2; castrated guinea pigs + 250 μg ET on days 65 and 80 of age), Group 3 (E2-G3; non-castrated guinea pigs), and Group 4 (E2-G4; castrated guinea pigs without ET). Analysis of variance using a General Linear Model (GLM) was performed. TT increased from day 20 to day 35 in both groups in the first experiment (P > 0.05). This increase in TT was maintained in E1-G1 on days 50, 65, and 80; however, TT fell to basal values in E1-G2 after castration. DPS guinea was directly related to TT level. In Experiment 2, guinea E2-G1 and E2-G2 animals that received ET showed an increase in TT, significantly differing from E2-G4 (P < 0.05). Nevertheless, ET administration in E2-G1 and E2-G2 was not sufficient to reach the TT levels in E2-G3. DPS was closely related to TT levels, such that when testicles were removed, the spicules began to atrophy without disappearing. Our results suggest that TT in guinea pigs increases steadily until puberty completes, after which it decreases and stabilizes and shows an association with DPS. Furthermore, 12-35% of TT produced by guinea pigs is testicle-independent. Finally, ET administration can stop and reverse the spicule atrophy process in castrated males. These results will help to manage guinea pigs in a more sustainable way in countries where this species is of utmost relevance to provide the population with the meat of high quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Ayala Guanga
- Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Cuenca, CU 010107, Ecuador.
| | - Susana Astiz
- Dpto. Reproducción Animal (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040, Madrid, Spain.
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Harada N, Yotsumoto Y, Katsuki T, Yoda Y, Masuda T, Nomura M, Shiraki N, Inui H, Yamaji R. Fetal androgen signaling defects affect pancreatic β-cell mass and function, leading to glucose intolerance in high-fat diet-fed male rats. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2019; 317:E731-E741. [PMID: 31287713 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00173.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
We previously demonstrated that androgen signaling expands pancreatic β-cell mass in the sexual maturation period (Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 314: E274-E286, 2018). The aim of this study was to elucidate whether fetal androgen signaling plays important roles in β-cell mass development and β-cell function in adulthood, defects of which are associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In the pancreas of male fetuses, androgen receptor (AR) was strongly expressed in the cytoplasm and at the cell membrane of Nkx6.1-positive β-cell precursor cells but was markedly reduced in insulin-positive β-cells. Administration of the anti-androgen flutamide to pregnant dams during late gestation reduced β-cell mass and Ki67-positive proliferating β-cells at birth in a male-specific manner without affecting body weight. The decrease of β-cell mass in flutamide-exposed male rats was not recovered when rats were fed a standard diet, whereas it was fully recovered when rats were fed a high-fat diet (HFD), at 6 and 12 wk of age. Flutamide exposure in utero led to the development of glucose intolerance in male rats due to a decrease in insulin secretion when fed HFD but not standard diet. Insulin sensitivity did not differ between the two groups irrespective of diet. These results indicated that the action of fetal androgen contributed to β-cell mass expansion in a sex-specific manner at birth and to the development of glucose intolerance by decreasing the secretion of insulin in HFD-fed male rats. Our data demonstrated the involvement of fetal androgen signaling in hypothesized sex differences in the developmental origins of health and disease by affecting pancreatic β-cell function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naoki Harada
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yusuke Yotsumoto
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Takahiro Katsuki
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yasuhiro Yoda
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Tatsuya Masuda
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Masayuki Nomura
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
| | - Nobuaki Shiraki
- Department of Biological Information, Graduate School of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Inui
- Division of Clinical Nutrition, Department of Clinical Nutrition, Graduate School of Comprehensive Rehabilitation, Osaka Prefecture University, Habikino, Osaka, Japan
| | - Ryoichi Yamaji
- Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, Japan
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Maliković J, Feyissa DD, Kalaba P, Marouf BS, Höger H, Hartmann MF, Wudy SA, Schuler G, Lubec G, Aradska J, Korz V. Age and cognitive status dependent differences in blood steroid and thyroid hormone concentrations in intact male rats. Behav Brain Funct 2019; 15:10. [PMID: 31256760 PMCID: PMC6600892 DOI: 10.1186/s12993-019-0161-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2019] [Accepted: 06/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Age-dependent alterations of hormonal states have been considered to be involved in age related decline of cognitive abilities. Most of the studies in animal models are based on hormonal substitution in adrenal- and/or gonadectomized rodents or infusion of steroid hormones in intact rats. Moreover, the manipulations have been done timely, closely related to test procedures, thus reflecting short-term hormonal mechanisms in the regulation of learning and memory. Here we studied whether more general states of steroid and thyroid hormone profiles, independent from acute experiences, may possibly reflect long-term learning capacity. A large cohort of aged (17–18 months) intact male rats were tested in a spatial hole-board learning task and a subset of inferior and superior learners was included into the analysis. Young male adult rats (16 weeks of age) were also tested. Four to 8 weeks after testing blood plasma samples were taken and hormone concentrations of a variety of steroid hormones were measured by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry or radioimmunoassay (17β-estradiol, thyroid hormones). Results Aged good learners were similar to young rats in the behavioral task. Aged poor learners but not good learners showed higher levels of triiodothyronine (T3) as compared to young rats. Aged good learners had higher levels of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) than aged poor learning and young rats. Both aged good and poor learners showed significantly reduced levels of testosterone (T), 4-androstenedione (4A), androstanediol-3α,17β (AD), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17OHP), higher levels of progesterone (Prog) and similar levels of 17β-estradiol (E2) as compared to young rats. The learning, but not the memory indices of all rats were significantly and positively correlated with levels of dihydrotestosterone, androstanediol-3α,17β and thyroxine (T4), when the impacts of age and cognitive division were eliminated by partial correlation analyses. Conclusion The correlation of hormone concentrations of individuals with individual behavior revealed a possible specific role of these androgen and thyroid hormones in a state of general preparedness to learn.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jovana Maliković
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniel Daba Feyissa
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Predrag Kalaba
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Babak Saber Marouf
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Harald Höger
- Core Unit of Biomedical Research, Division of Laboratory Animal Science and Genetics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michaela F Hartmann
- Steroid Research & Mass Spectrometry Unit, Peptide Hormone Research Unit, Laboratory for Translational Hormone Analytics in Pediatric Endocrinology, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetology, Center of Child and Adolescent Medicine, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Stefan A Wudy
- Steroid Research & Mass Spectrometry Unit, Peptide Hormone Research Unit, Laboratory for Translational Hormone Analytics in Pediatric Endocrinology, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetology, Center of Child and Adolescent Medicine, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Gerhard Schuler
- Veterinary Clinic for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Andrology of Large and Small Animals, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Gert Lubec
- Neuroscience Laboratory, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020, Salzburg, Austria
| | - Jana Aradska
- Neuroscience Laboratory, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020, Salzburg, Austria.
| | - Volker Korz
- Neuroscience Laboratory, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020, Salzburg, Austria.
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Harada N. Role of androgens in energy metabolism affecting on body composition, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and longevity: lessons from a meta-analysis and rodent studies. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 2018; 82:1667-1682. [PMID: 29957125 DOI: 10.1080/09168451.2018.1490172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Testosterone is a sex hormone produced by testicular Leydig cells in males. Blood testosterone concentrations increase at three time-periods in male life-fetal, neonatal (which can be separated into newborn and infant periods), and pubertal stages. After peaking in the early 20s, the blood bioactive testosterone level declines by 1-2% each year. It is increasingly apparent that a low testosterone level impairs general physical and mental health in men. Here, this review summarizes recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses of epidemiological studies in males (including cross-sectional, longitudinal, and androgen deprivation studies, and randomized controlled testosterone replacement trials) in relation to testosterone and obesity, body composition, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and longevity. Furthermore, underlying mechanisms are discussed using data from rodent studies involving castration or androgen receptor knockout. This review provides an update understanding of the role of testosterone in energy metabolism. Abbreviations AR: androgen receptor; CV: cardiovascular; FDA: US Food and Drug Administration; HFD: high-fat diet; KO: knockout; MetS: metabolic syndrome; RCT: randomized controlled trial; SHBG: sex hormone binding globulin; SRMA: systematic review and meta-analysis; TRT: testosterone replacement therapy; T2DM:type 2 diabetes mellitus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naoki Harada
- a Division of Applied Life Sciences , Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University , Sakai , Osaka , Japan
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Comelis MT, Bueno LM, Góes RM, Taboga S, Morielle-Versute E. Morphological and histological characters of penile organization in eleven species of molossid bats. ZOOLOGY 2018; 127:70-83. [DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2018.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2017] [Revised: 12/14/2017] [Accepted: 01/27/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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DiBenedictis BT, Nussbaum ER, Cheung HK, Veenema AH. Quantitative mapping reveals age and sex differences in vasopressin, but not oxytocin, immunoreactivity in the rat social behavior neural network. J Comp Neurol 2017; 525:2549-2570. [PMID: 28340511 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2016] [Revised: 03/14/2017] [Accepted: 03/14/2017] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
The neuropeptides vasopressin (AVP) and oxytocin (OT) have been implicated in the regulation of numerous social behaviors in adult and juvenile animals. AVP and OT signaling predominantly occur within a circuit of interconnected brain regions known collectively as the "social behavior neural network" (SBNN). Importantly, AVP and OT signaling within the SBNN has been shown to differentially regulate diverse social behaviors, depending on the age and/or sex of the animal. We hypothesized that variation in the display of these behaviors is due in part to age and sex differences in AVP and OT synthesis within the SBNN. However, a thorough characterization of AVP and OT-immunoreactive (ir) fibers and cell bodies across age and sex within the SBNN has been lacking in rats. We therefore quantified AVP- and OT-ir fibers and cell bodies in 22 subregions of the forebrain SBNN in juvenile and adult, male and female rats. We found numerous age (16 subregions) and sex (10 subregions) differences in AVP-ir fiber fractional areas, and AVP-ir cell body numbers, which were mainly observed in the medial amygdala/bed nucleus of the stria terminalis to lateral septum circuit. In contrast to AVP, we observed no age or sex differences in OT-ir fiber fractional areas or cell bodies in any of the 22 subregions of the forebrain SBNN. Thus, unlike the static pattern observed for OT, AVP innervation of the forebrain SBNN appears to undergo developmental changes, and is highly sexually dimorphic, which likely has significant functional consequences for the regulation of social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brett T DiBenedictis
- Neurobiology of Social Behavior Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
| | - Elizabeth R Nussbaum
- Neurobiology of Social Behavior Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
| | - Harry K Cheung
- Neurobiology of Social Behavior Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
| | - Alexa H Veenema
- Neurobiology of Social Behavior Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
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