A competitive effect of androgen signaling on male mouse attraction to volatile female mouse odors

• Published in: Physiology & behavior Vol. 87; no. 1; pp. 199 - 205
• Main Authors: Muroi, Yoshikage, Ishii, Toshiaki, Komori, Seiichi, Nishimura, Masakazu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge Elsevier Inc 30.01.2006; New York, NY Elsevier
• Subjects: Analysis of Variance; Androgens - pharmacology; Androgens - physiology; Animal ethology; Animals; Animals, Outbred Strains; Behavioral psychophysiology; Biological and medical sciences; Dihydrotestosterone - pharmacology; Estradiol - physiology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hormone; Hormones and behavior; Male; Mammalia; Mice; Olfaction; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Sex Attractants - physiology; Sex Factors; Sexual behavior; Sexual Behavior, Animal - drug effects; Sexual Behavior, Animal - physiology; Signal Transduction - drug effects; Signal Transduction - physiology; Smell - drug effects; Smell - physiology; Statistics, Nonparametric; Vertebrata; Hormone; Olfaction; Sexual behavior; Chemical communication; Animal communication; Androgen; Rodentia; Male; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Mouse; Sexual attraction; Animal; Perception; Estrous cycle; Sex steroid hormone; Odor
• ISSN: 0031-9384; 1873-507X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2005.10.002

Olfaction plays an important role in animal communication. We hypothesized that males recognize the attractive volatile odors attributed to female reproductive ability. We measured the period during which a male mouse spent sniffing volatile odors from a sham-operated female mouse or an ovariectomized mouse without visual or tactile contact. Intact male mice spent more time sniffing volatile odors from proestrous, estrous or metestrous females than from ovariectomized females. There was no difference in castrated male mice. To investigate the involvement of sexual hormone in this behavior, castrated male mice were treated with 17 α-estradiol (E), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), or both. E-treatment did not affect sniffing behavior. Regardless of the estrous stages, DHT-treated castrated males spent less time sniffing the volatile odors from sham-operated than from ovariectomized female mice. Both E- and DHT-treated castrated males spent less time sniffing the volatile odors from proestrous or estrous females than from ovariectomized females. These results suggest that neither androgen nor estrogen is sufficient for reproducing male attraction to volatile female mouse odors, and that androgen signaling has a competitive effect against the attraction.