Chemosignaling in Cba and C57bl/6 Mouse Strains Is Modified by Stress

Abstract

Chemosignaling is widespread among animals as tool for regulation of synecological interactions. Evolutional conservatism of such signaling allows us to suggest that same chemosignals play an important role in different animal species including human beings. Aversion/attraction of mouse pheromone 2,5- dimethylpyrazine (2,5-DMP) and 2,3-dimethylpyrazine (2,3-DMP) for CBA and C57BL/6 mice was studied in T-maze. It is shown that intact males and females of both strains under choice condition prefer 2,3-DMP to water and 2,5-DMP. They also prefer water to 2,5-DMP Stress after swimming modifies behavior in T-maze: all preferences disappear in C57BL/6 males and remain without changes in CBA males. Importance of behavioral changes obtained here under stress condition is discussed. Detailed studies of the preference modulation with recently shown other effects of 2,5-DMP could connect specific sensitivity to chemosignals with the pheromone, stress and genotype.

Effect of two pyrazine-containing chemosignals on cells of bone marrow and testes in male house mice (Mus musculus L.)

“…Thus two factors can be specified that determine biological activity of olfactory chemosignals in house mice: (1) relative position of methyl radicals in the pyrazine ring, which was shown earlier [10,11]; (2) the lateral chain structure revealed in the present work by using the metaphase analysis.…”

“…2,3-Dimethylpyrazine (2,3-DMP) has been shown to be attractive, while 2,5-DMP aversive both to males and to females of CBA mice used as test animals [11]. Preliminary data show that 2-carboxy-5-methylpyrazine (CMP) is also aversive to test animals.…”

Pheromonal effects on germ cells of house mouse males: possible evolutionary consequences

“…The excretion of 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (DMP) in mouse urine is adrenal dependent (Ma et al, 1998). In CBA mice it has been shown that tester males and females avoid DMP in a T-maze (Daev et al, 2007). Smelling DMP also induces immune suppression in mice: the quantity of antibody-producing cells is reduced as under physical stress, and the chromosome aberration level in bone marrow dividing cells is increased (Daev et al, 2007a).…”