Edwards D A, Griffis K T, Tardivel C
Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322.
Physiol Behav. 1990 Sep;48(3):447-50. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(90)90342-2.
Control and bilaterally bulbectomized male rats were tested in an arena where the male could choose to spend time with (and mate with) a sexually receptive female, a nonreceptive female, or be in a neutral compartment. Control males mated with, and showed a strong preference for, sexually receptive females. Bulbectomy virtually eliminated mating. In addition, bulbectomized males showed no preference for a receptive female over a nonreceptive female, and spent their time equally between the receptive female, the nonreceptive female, and the neutral compartment. Effects of bulbectomy on preference and copulation could be consequences of a severely impaired ability to smell--the perception of odors may be essential for sexual arousal, or the absence of preference and copulation after bulbectomy might reflect a deficit in the male's ability to make odor-dependent classification of conspecifics as appropriate sexual partners. Or the behavioral effects of bulbectomy might reflect a disruption of tonic input to the forebrain that has little or nothing to do with the sensory impairment that follows bulb removal. But whatever the reason, in partner-preference tests bulbectomized males show a striking indifference to the sexual status of females, and it seems likely that the failure to mate is causally linked to this effect of surgery.
对对照组雄性大鼠和双侧切除嗅球的雄性大鼠在一个实验场地进行测试，在该场地雄性大鼠可以选择与处于发情期的雌性大鼠相处（并与之交配）、与非发情期的雌性大鼠相处，或者待在一个中性隔间。对照组雄性大鼠会与处于发情期的雌性大鼠交配，并且对其表现出强烈的偏好。切除嗅球实际上消除了交配行为。此外，切除嗅球的雄性大鼠对发情期雌性大鼠和非发情期雌性大鼠没有表现出偏好，它们在发情期雌性大鼠、非发情期雌性大鼠和中性隔间之间花费的时间相同。切除嗅球对偏好和交配行为的影响可能是嗅觉能力严重受损的结果——气味感知可能对性唤起至关重要，或者切除嗅球后缺乏偏好和交配行为可能反映出雄性大鼠无法根据气味将同种个体正确分类为合适的性伴侣。或者切除嗅球的行为影响可能反映了对前脑的紧张性输入的破坏，这与切除嗅球后出现的感觉障碍几乎没有关系。但无论原因是什么，在伴侣偏好测试中，切除嗅球的雄性大鼠对雌性大鼠的性状态表现出明显的漠不关心，而且未能交配似乎与手术的这种影响存在因果关系。
