Mas M, Rodriguez del Castillo A, Guerra M, Davidson J M, Battaner E
Departamentos de Fisiologia y Bioquimica, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.
Physiol Behav. 1987;41(4):341-5. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(87)90398-2.
This report presents evidence of changes in the concentration of monoamine neurotransmitters and their metabolites in homogenates of spinal cord and brain areas of male rats related to specific events of their mating behavior. Intact male rats were allowed to copulate with receptive females and decapitated immediately after either the first intromission or the first ejaculation. Non-mating control animals were exposed to other males, instead of females. The concentration of monoamines (norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin) and some of their major metabolites (DOPAC and HIAA) in homogenates of discrete brain areas (parietal cortex, preoptic region, mediobasal hypothalamus) and lumbosacral spinal cord were measured by HPLC-ED. Results suggest that sexual arousal is associated with both increased dopaminergic activity in the preoptic region and inhibition of descending monoaminergic signals to the lumbosacral cord, whereas ejaculation is accompanied by increased activity of the serotonergic, as well as dopaminergic, innervation of the preoptic region. These findings give neurochemical support to notions of central monoamines involvement in sexual behavior suggested by previous pharmacological studies.
本报告提供了雄性大鼠脊髓和脑区匀浆中与交配行为特定事件相关的单胺类神经递质及其代谢物浓度变化的证据。完整的雄性大鼠与处于发情期的雌性大鼠交配，并在首次插入或首次射精后立即断头处死。非交配对照动物接触的是其他雄性大鼠，而非雌性大鼠。采用高效液相色谱 - 电化学检测法（HPLC - ED）测量离散脑区（顶叶皮质、视前区、下丘脑中间基底部）和腰骶部脊髓匀浆中单胺类物质（去甲肾上腺素、多巴胺和血清素）及其一些主要代谢物（3,4 - 二羟基苯乙酸和5 - 羟吲哚乙酸）的浓度。结果表明，性唤起与视前区多巴胺能活性增加以及向腰骶部脊髓下行的单胺能信号抑制有关，而射精则伴随着视前区血清素能以及多巴胺能神经支配活性的增加。这些发现为先前药理学研究所提出的中枢单胺类物质参与性行为的观点提供了神经化学支持。
