Kerchner M, Ward I L
Department of Psychology, Villanova University, PA 19085.
Brain Res. 1992 May 29;581(2):244-51. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(92)90714-k.
A computer-assisted image analysis technique was used to measure the adult volume of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the medial preoptic area (SDN-MPOA) in prenatally stressed male rats and in groups of non-stressed males and females. The SDN-MPOA of male offspring from dams stressed daily (i.e. three 45-min exposures to physical restraint and bright light) during the last week of pregnancy was significantly smaller than in males not exposed to stress, but was larger than in females. Maternal stress has been shown to attenuate the surge in fetal plasma testosterone (T) which normally occurs on days 18 and 19 of gestation in male rats. The present results suggest that suppression of T during prenatal development leads to an incomplete masculinization of the SDN-MPOA in male rats. There was no difference in SDN-MPOA volume between males that exhibited the ejaculatory pattern when tested with estrous females and males that failed to ejaculate in either the control or prenatal stress group. SDN-MPOA volume does not appear to be predictive of masculine ejaculatory performance.
采用计算机辅助图像分析技术，对产前应激雄性大鼠以及非应激雄性和雌性大鼠群体中内侧视前区性二态核（SDN-MPOA）的成年体积进行测量。在孕期最后一周每天接受应激（即三次45分钟的身体束缚和强光照射）的母鼠所产雄性后代的SDN-MPOA，显著小于未暴露于应激的雄性大鼠，但大于雌性大鼠。母源性应激已被证明会减弱雄性大鼠孕期第18和19天通常出现的胎儿血浆睾酮（T）激增。目前的结果表明，产前发育期间T的抑制导致雄性大鼠SDN-MPOA的雄性化不完全。在与发情期雌性大鼠测试时表现出射精模式的雄性大鼠和在对照组或产前应激组中未能射精的雄性大鼠之间，SDN-MPOA体积没有差异。SDN-MPOA体积似乎不能预测雄性射精表现。
