Neuroendocrine Regulation of Reproductive Behavior in Birds

Ball, Gregory F.; Balthazart, Jacques

doi:10.1016/b978-008088783-8.00025-5

Cited by 27 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 301 publications

(364 reference statements)

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“…Perhaps the best connection between neuroanatomy and behavior is bird song. There is in general a reasonable positive correlation between the degree that there is a sex difference in song behavior and the degree that there is a sex difference in the volume of key forebrain nuclei that control the learning and production of birdsong (Ball et al 2009), but even here the correlation does not always hold up. In Streak-Backed Orioles the song control system shows the usual male bias in size yet females sing more than males (Hall et al 2010).…”

Section: Behavioral Output May Not Match Neuroanatomical Canalizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surprising origins of sex differences in the brain

McCarthy

Pickett

VanRyzin

et al. 2015

Hormones and Behavior

135

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Discerning the biologic origins of neuroanatomical sex differences has been of interest since they were first reported in the late 60’s and early 70’s. The centrality of gonadal hormone exposure during a developmental critical window cannot be denied but hormones are indirect agents of change, acting to induce gene transcription or modulate membrane bound signaling cascades. Sex differences in the brain include regional volume differences due to differential cell death, neuronal and glial genesis, dendritic branching and synaptic patterning. Early emphasis on mechanism therefore focused on neurotransmitters and neural growth factors, but by and large these endpoints failed to explain the origins of neural sex differences. More recently evidence has accumulated in favor of inflammatory mediators and immune cells as principle regulators of brain sexual differentiation and reveal that the establishment of dimorphic circuits is not cell autonomous but instead requires extensive cell-to-cell communication including cells of non-neuronal origin. Despite the multiplicity of cells involved the nature of the sex differences in the neuroanatomical endpoints suggests canalization, a process that explains the robustness of individuals in the face of intrinsic and extrinsic variability. We propose that some neuroanatomical endpoints are canalized to enhance sex differences in the brain by reducing variability within one sex while also preventing the sexes from diverging too greatly. We further propose mechanisms by which such canalization could occur and discuss what relevance this may have to sex differences in behavior.

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Section: Behavioral Output May Not Match Neuroanatomical Canalizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surprising origins of sex differences in the brain

McCarthy

Pickett

VanRyzin

et al. 2015

Hormones and Behavior

135

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…40 In addition, the arcuate nucleus of the tuberal hypothalamus is in females, as in males, a major site of steroid feedback action on the release of the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and a change in local oestrogen production has been proposed to play a role in GnRH release in female primates. 41 It should also be noted that because the POM projects to both the Tub and the VMN, 4 it is possible that the rapid changes of AA occurring in POM regulate neurotransmission in these downstream regions to control female sexual behaviour. To date, the reasons underlying the neuroanatomical specificity of these changes remain unclear and could only be understood with additional studies.…”

Section: Where Is the Effect Observed?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…3 Many aspects of these behavioural effects take days to weeks to develop and therefore are considered to be mediated by the transcriptional activity of the occupied nuclear oestrogen receptors. 4,5 However, recent studies have also shown that some activational effects of oestrogens on behaviour are already observed within minutes. In particular, male sexual motivation is decreased 15-30 minutes after the administration of aromatase inhibitors and is restored 15 minutes after the administration of exogenous oestradiol.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid changes in brain aromatase activity in the female quail brain following expression of sexual behaviour

Bournonville

Ball

Balthazart

et al. 2017

J Neuroendocrinology

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In male quail, oestrogens produced in the brain (neuro-oestrogens) exert a dual action on male sexual behaviour: they increase sexual motivation within minutes via mechanisms activated at the membrane but facilitate sexual performance by slower, presumably nuclear-initiated, mechanisms. Recent work indicates that neuro-oestrogens are also implicated in the control of female sexual motivation despite the presence of high circulating concentrations of oestrogens of ovarian origin. Interestingly, aromatase activity (AA) in the male brain is regulated in time domains corresponding to the slow "genomic" and faster "nongenomic" modes of action of oestrogens. Furthermore, rapid changes in brain AA are observed in males after sexual interactions with a female. In the present study, we investigated whether similar rapid changes in brain AA are observed in females allowed to interact sexually with males. A significant decrease in AA was observed in the medial preoptic nucleus after interactions that lasted 2, 5 or 10 minutes, although this decrease was no longer significant after 15 minutes of interaction. In the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, a progressive decline of average AA was observed between 2 and 15 minutes, although it never reached statistical significance. AA in this nucleus was, however, negatively correlated with the sexual receptivity of the female. These data indicate that sexual interactions affect brain AA in females as in males in an anatomically specific manner and suggest that rapid changes in brain oestrogens production could also modulate female sexual behaviour.

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“…Testosterone is a sex steroid that is known to influence the development and/or expression of sexually selected traits (Hau, 2007; Fusani, 2008; Ball and Balthazart, 2009). In combination with its effects on other fitness related traits (e.g., immune function, Segner et al, 2017), testosterone is thought to enforce the honesty of sexually selected traits (Ketterson and Nolan, Jr., 1999, Buchanan et al, 2001, Wingfield et al, 2001, Reed et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing a transcriptomic framework for testing testosterone-mediated handicap hypotheses

Newhouse

Vernasco

2019

Preprint

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13Sexually selected traits are hypothesized to be honest signals of individual quality due to the 14 costs associated with their development or expression. Testosterone, a sex steroid known to 15 influence the production of sexually selected traits, has been proposed to underlie the costs 16 associated with sexually selected traits via its immunosuppressive effects (i.e., the 17 Immunocompetence Handicap Hypothesis) or by influencing an individual's 18 exposure/susceptibility to oxidative stress (i.e., the Oxidation Handicap Hypothesis). Previous 19 work testing these hypotheses has primarily focused on physiological measurements of immunity 20 or oxidative stress, but little is known about the molecular pathways by which testosterone could 21 influence immunity and/or oxidative stress pathways. To measure the molecular consequences of 22 experimentally elevated testosterone, we used previously published RNA-seq data from studies 23 that measured the transcriptome of individuals treated with either a testosterone-filled or an 24 empty (i.e., control) implant. Two studies encompassing two species of bird and three tissue 25 types fit our selection criteria. We found strong support for the Immunocompetence Handicap 26 Hypothesis, but no support for the Oxidation Handicap Hypothesis. More specifically, 27 testosterone-treated individuals exhibited strong signatures of immunosuppression, 28 encompassing both cell-mediated and humoral immunity. Our results suggest that testosterone 29 enforces the honesty of sexually-selected traits by influencing an individual's 30 immunocompetence rather than their exposure or susceptibility to oxidative stress.31 32

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Neuroendocrine Regulation of Reproductive Behavior in Birds

Cited by 27 publications

References 301 publications

Surprising origins of sex differences in the brain

Surprising origins of sex differences in the brain

Rapid changes in brain aromatase activity in the female quail brain following expression of sexual behaviour

Developing a transcriptomic framework for testing testosterone-mediated handicap hypotheses

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