Influence of gonadal hormones on odours emitted by male meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

Ferkin, Michael H.; Gorman, Michael R.; Zucker, I. Richard

doi:10.1530/jrf.0.0950729

Cited by 21 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Females investigated the anogenital region of anaesthetized adult intact males far more frequently and these contacts lasted longer than in the case of a castrated male. Similarly, in the meadow vole the female-attractant cue in male odours is reduced after gonadectomy but is reinstated by testosterone treatment (Ferkin et al 1992). Gonadectomy in other rodent species also reduces the attractiveness of odours to the opposite sex and the extent of olfactory investigation, while replacement with gonadal hormones restores such behaviour (Scott and Pfaff 1970, Johnston 1990, Miernicki et al 1990.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Reactions of female bank voles Clethrionomys glareolus to male chemosignals

Kruczek

1994

Acta Theriol.

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Reactions of female bank volesThe behavioural reactions of 110 female bank voles Clethrionomys glareolus (Schreber, 1780) to male chemosignals were studied in a 10 min two-choice preference test. Females spent more time investigating odours from the anogenital region of intact males and these contacts were much more frequent than in the case of castrated male. Male urine and homogenate of the salivary glands, kidney and preputial glands were very attractive to females. The extract of the liver, testes and seminal vesicles and coagulating glands had no effect on female behaviour. These findings indicate that the male chemosignals which attract females have a multiple source.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Reactions of female bank voles Clethrionomys glareolus to male chemosignals

Kruczek

1994

Acta Theriol.

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“…Female rodents of several species prefer the urinary odors of intact versus castrated adult males, indicating that gonadal hormones influence the attractiveness of these odors (Ferkin et al, 1992; Ferkin and Johnston, 1993; Taylor et al, 1983). Thus, the observed increase in female investigation of higher baseline-T males could reflect sexual attraction to odor cues that indicate the presence of a reproductively active male.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Testosterone (T) is one biological factor that has been shown to support universal attractiveness of male odors in rodents (Ferkin et al, 1992; Taylor et al, 1982), and may be of particular significance for mate choice in the California mouse given that it is associated with critical male social behaviors in this species; recently, we reported that male T-response to courtship interactions predicts future paternal behavior, specifically in the amount of pup huddling and grooming performed when the female is temporarily absent (Gleason and Marler, 2010). Moreover, these findings are consistent with a general promotion of paternal behavior by T in the California mouse (Trainor and Marler, 2001, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compatibility drives female preference and reproductive success in the monogamous California mouse (Peromyscus californicus) more strongly than male testosterone measures

Gleason

Holschbach

Marler

2012

Hormones and Behavior

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Female assessment of male attractiveness and how preferred qualities impact reproductive success is central to the study of mate choice. Male attractiveness may depend on traits beneficial to the reproductive success (RS) of any female, termed ‘universal quality’, and/or on behavioral and biological interactions between potential mates that reflect ‘compatibility’. The steroid hormone testosterone (T) often underlies male attractiveness in rodents and is associated with enhanced paternal care in the monogamous and biparental California mouse (Peromyscus californicus). We hypothesized that (1) T-characteristics are universally attractive to female California mice and that (2) if reproductive success is higher for females mated with preferred males, then females mated with males preferred by other females will also have higher reproductive success. Alternatively, we speculated that pair compatibility, based on emergent pair qualities, is important for a species with coordinated offspring care. We assessed individual T-characteristics in three ways: (1) T-response to GnRH challenges (2) baseline T-level and (3) T-response to a female. Testosterone-response did not predict female preference, but females spent more time investigating males with higher baseline T (accounting for only 9.6% of the variation in investigation time). None of the T-measures was associated with RS. Females paired with males they preferred produced litters more quickly and had higher RS than females paired with their non-preferred males. Naïve females who did not undergo preference tests had equivalent RS regardless of whether their mate was preferred or non-preferred by another female. These data suggest that higher male T elicits investigation, but female preference in the California mouse is more strongly linked with compatibility because individual preference was a better predictor of RS than any T measure.

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“…For example, high titers of the gonadal steroid hormones characterize long-day breeders such as voles and Syrian hamsters housed under long photoperiod, whereas low titers of these hormones are characteristic of individuals housed under short photoperiod (48,54). In voles, high titers of gonadal steroids support reproductive activity and related behaviors directed at opposite-sex conspecifics, whereas low titers of gonadal steroids induce reproductive quiescence and related behaviors not directed at opposite-sex conspecifics (19)(20)(21)(33)(34)(35).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Meadow voles are an excellent species to study in this regard because they display striking seasonal differences in their responses to odors of conspecifics, an indication of their interest in the opposite sex (17,18). During the breeding season or under long photoperiod (LP), meadow voles spend more time investigating the scent marks of opposite-sex conspecifics relative to those of same-sex conspecifics (15,(18)(19)(20)(21), and spend more time self-grooming when they encounter opposite-sex conspecifics relative to those of same-sex conspecifics (34). In contrast, during the non-breeding season or under short photoperiod (SP), meadow voles have fewer interactions with opposite-sex conspecifics and generally become reproductively quiescent (18,22,36).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exogenous melatonin administration affects self-grooming and conspecific odor preferences in long-photoperiod meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

Ferkin

Leonard

Gilless

2007

Physiology & Behavior

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For meadow voles, Microtus pennsylvanicus, seasonal differences exist in self-grooming and in odor preferences for conspecifics, two behaviors which facilitate sexual interactions in this species. Both behaviors are mediated by photoperiodically-induced changes in circulating gonadal steroid hormone titers which, in turn, can be transduced by the duration of the melatonin signal that a seasonally breeding animal receives. The goal of this study was to determine whether exogenous melatonin administration affects circulating gonadal steroid hormone titers in meadow voles, and whether it influences their odor preferences and self-grooming behavior to same- and opposite-sex conspecifics. Long-photoperiod voles that did not receive exogenous melatonin had higher testosterone (males) and estradiol (females) titers than did short-photoperiod voles and long-photoperiod voles treated with melatonin for 12 weeks; the latter had similar estradiol and testosterone titers. Long-photoperiod voles that did not receive melatonin preferred the scent marks of long-photoperiod opposite-sex conspecifics and spent more time self-grooming in response to their odors than those of either long-photoperiod same-sex, short-photoperiod same-sex, or short-photoperiod opposite-sex conspecifics. Long-photoperiod voles that received melatonin, however, no longer preferred the marks of long-photoperiod opposite-sex conspecifics and no longer spent more time self-grooming in response to their odors, not unlike the odor preferences and self-grooming behavior of short-photoperiod voles. As a whole, the data suggest that the duration of the melatonin signal is likely involved in mediating the photoperiodically-induced changes in gonadal steroid hormones that mediate a meadow vole's odor preferences for opposite-sex conspecifics and its self-grooming response to those marks.

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Influence of gonadal hormones on odours emitted by male meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

Cited by 21 publications

References 21 publications

Reactions of female bank voles Clethrionomys glareolus to male chemosignals

Reactions of female bank voles Clethrionomys glareolus to male chemosignals

Compatibility drives female preference and reproductive success in the monogamous California mouse (Peromyscus californicus) more strongly than male testosterone measures

Exogenous melatonin administration affects self-grooming and conspecific odor preferences in long-photoperiod meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus)

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