Laboratorio de Biología de la Reproducción, UMF, FES Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. de los Barrios No. 1, Tlalnepantla, Edo. de México, Mexico.
Departamento de Biología de la Reproducción, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Apartado Postal 55 535, C.P. 09340, D.F., Mexico.
Physiol Behav. 2019 Feb 1;199:351-358. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.12.001. Epub 2018 Dec 4.
The present study evaluates the role of social factors in the transition from infanticidal to paternal male behavior and its association with T concentration, presence of estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) and androgen receptor (AR) in the olfactory bulb (OB), medial preoptic area (mPOA) and medial amygdala (MeA) of Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). This study included thirty-six sexually inexperienced males displaying aggressive behavior toward foreign pups. The selected animals were mated and organized into four groups. The paternal behavior tests were performed on the day of copulation (DCOPUL), during cohabitation with a pregnant female (CPREG), on the day of birth (DBIRTH), and on day 6 postpartum (DPP6). Eight sexually inexperienced males (CTL (male-male cohabitation) were used as control. After paternal behavior tests, blood samples were obtained to quantify T by radioimmunoassay; the brains were removed and analyzed for immunoreactivity (ir) of ERα and AR. All males of the DCOPUL, DBIRTH, and DPP6 groups exhibited paternal behavior, whereas the males of CPREG and CTL groups were aggressive with the pups. Paternal behavior was associated with high T concentrations, and the presence of ERα-ir and AR-ir in the OB, MeA, and mPOA. These results suggest that the transition from aggressive to paternal response to pups is facilitated by copulation, and that in this transition is involved an increase in T concentration. Moreover, the presence of ERα-ir and AR-ir in the OB, mPOA, and MeA could indicate that estrogenic and androgenic pathways participate in the regulation of paternal behavior of the Mongolian gerbils.
本研究评估了社会因素在从杀婴到父性行为的转变中的作用，以及其与 T 浓度、雌激素受体 alpha（ERα）和雄激素受体（AR）在蒙古沙鼠（Meriones unguiculatus）嗅球（OB）、中前脑区（mPOA）和中杏仁核（MeA）中的存在之间的关系。本研究包括 36 只表现出对外来幼仔攻击性行为的未经验性雄性。选择的动物进行交配，并分为四组。在交配日（DCOPUL）、与怀孕雌性同居期间（CPREG）、分娩日（DBIRTH）和产后第 6 天（DPP6）进行父性行为测试。还使用了 8 只未经验性雄性（CTL（雄性-雄性同居）作为对照。在进行父性行为测试后，采集血液样本用放射免疫法测定 T 浓度；取出大脑并分析 ERα和 AR 的免疫反应（ir）。DCOPUL、DBIRTH 和 DPP6 组的所有雄性都表现出父性行为，而 CPREG 和 CTL 组的雄性则对幼仔具有攻击性。父性行为与高 T 浓度以及 ERα-ir 和 AR-ir 在 OB、MeA 和 mPOA 中的存在有关。这些结果表明，从对幼仔的攻击性反应到父性行为的转变是由交配促进的，并且在这种转变中，T 浓度增加。此外，OB、mPOA 和 MeA 中 ERα-ir 和 AR-ir 的存在可能表明雌激素和雄激素途径参与了蒙古沙鼠父性行为的调节。
